Body worn electrical equipment presents a unique decontamination dilemma. Because wearable computers are often used as prostheses, to monitor heart, respiration, and other physiological parameters, and like eyeglasses, by the visually impaired to see, a victim may not be able to safely evacuate an area without the apparatus. A wearable computer user may feel dizzy or disoriented when the system is removed, and cannot safely evacuate an area.
Moreover, some persons using wearable computers in ordinary day-to-day life are not accustomed to undressing in front of strangers.
The police spokesman said ``Computer geeks are the kind of people who never played sports in school, and never got used to the idea of undressing and showering in front of their team mates. When people refuse to undress, this creates a serious problem. We need to bring back the good old days of mandatory physical education in schools and mandatory delousing and hygiene inspections. People got no business wearing computers. Wearable computers are a stupid idea.''
Because of this incident, talk is underway on the building of a new decon facility in downtown Toronto.
Toronto has designated the medical center as the Control Facility (CF) in the event of any kind of multicasualty incident, defined as any event that requires more emergency medical resources to adequately handle victims than are available under routine circumstances. A multicasualty incident could result from natural or human-made events, such as floods, earthquakes, a loss of utilities, acts of civil disobedience and accidents in which persons would be rounded up and directed to the CF for processing.
When asked how he would address potential privacy concerns, the spokesman said that men and women would go through different compartments. After the showers, they would have to wear paper suits until uncontaminated clothing could be brought to them. Personal belongings would be decontaminated separately, and some items may have to be destroyed, he said.