[단독]The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency is not involved in responding to waste balloons… Possibility of bioterrorism points out “holes in security system”

North Korean waste balloons found throughout the metropolitan area. Pictured from the left are Daenam balloons found near Jamsil Bridge in Seoul, the sea off Incheon, Geumchon-dong in Paju, and an inhuri field in Icheon. Yonhap News

It has been confirmed that the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency is not participating in the government’s response to North Korea’s recent waste balloon provocation. It is pointed out that without the participation of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, there may be holes in the security system because it is difficult to preemptively prepare for bioterrorism risks such as poisons or viruses.

According to data submitted by the office of Democratic Party lawmaker Seo Mi-hwa, a member of the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee, from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on the 28th, the Joint Chiefs of Staff first reported the situation to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency regarding the response to the site of the fall of waste balloons in May, when the waste balloons were first distributed. The situation regarding waste balloons was never shared with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

On May 29, the day after the first dispersal of waste balloons, the Joint Chiefs of Staff reported the on-site response situation to the Crisis Management Division of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency via landline, but there was no sharing of the situation between the two sides. Afterwards, several more requests and replies followed for support of multiple detection kits. In addition, when the Joint Chiefs of Staff shared the situation, The communication was made through the personal cell phone of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency officer, rather than through a separate secure communication medium. Last June, when the Joint Chiefs of Staff held a meeting of integrated defense-related organizations to discuss measures to ensure public safety in relation to the distribution of waste balloons and attacks to disrupt global positioning system (GPS) radio waves, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency was not included.

North Korea has distributed more than 6,000 waste balloons about 30 times since last May. The frequency of spraying, which was only in the single digits from May to August, has recently increased to more than double digits since last month.

The waste balloon contained discarded paper, plastic, daily necessities waste, human fertilizer, etc., and the risk of bioterrorism through this cannot be ignored. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency also announced during an audit by the National Assembly Welfare Committee in September that it would stockpile vaccines, saying there was a risk of bioterrorism caused by waste balloons. Bioterrorism refers to an act that uses viruses, bacteria, toxins, etc. to cause disease or kill. Biological weapons have an incubation period, so they are difficult to detect in the early stages, and even trace amounts can be lethal, so a quick response is paramount. Once contaminated, it is easy to reproduce and spread on its own and spread widely.

Officials are collecting debris from waste balloons believed to have been distributed by North Korea in the parking lot of a shopping mall in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province, in June. Yonhap News

The fact that the multiple detection kit provided by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency to the Joint Chiefs of Staff is not detecting major hazardous substances is also raising concerns. There are a total of 9 types of substances that the kit can detect, but it cannot detect 3 types of bioterrorism infectious diseases (Ebola, Marburg, and Lassa virus) that are designated as domestic high-risk pathogens. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said, “We have established a diagnostic testing system that can laboratory test viruses that are not included in the kit when a suspected case occurs, and we are also developing a new on-site testing kit that can also detect hemorrhagic fever viruses using the latest technology.” “In the case of vaccines, development is in progress, and domestic production is expected to be possible starting next year, so we plan to pursue stockpiling in earnest,” he said.

Rep. Seo Mi-hwa said, “Although an unprecedented terrorist attack occurred, the Joint Chiefs of Staff did not have an adequate number of multiple detection kits to prepare for the possibility of bioterrorism, and did not share with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency whether hazardous substances were discovered.” He added, “The risk of bioterrorism has increased. “In this situation, it is a serious problem that the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency is missing from the security system,” he said.

An official from the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, “The Joint Chiefs of Staff is sharing the situation with the Ministry of Public Administration and Security regarding the waste balloons, and samples are being collected and analyzed by the Armed Forces Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Defense Research Institute.” An official from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said, “After the sewage balloon situation occurred, we were contacted by the military to respond collectively,” and added, “The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency is doing its best to prepare for bioterrorism.”