Cover your mouth with a handkerchief or clothing. Tap on a pipe or wall so that rescuers can hear where you are. Untrained persons should not attempt to rescue people who are inside a collapsed building. Wait for emergency personnel to arrive. Chemical agents are poisonous gases, liquids or solids that have toxic effects on people, animals or plants.
Most chemical agents cause serious injuries or death.
Were a chemical agent attack to occur, authorities would instruct citizens to either seek shelter where they are and seal the premises or evacuate immediately. Exposure to chemical agents can be fatal. Leaving the shelter to rescue or assist victims can be a deadly decision. There is no assistance that the untrained can offer that would likely be of any value to the victims of chemical agents. Biological agents are organisms or toxins that have illness-producing effects on people, livestock and crops.