Propaganda materials carried by balloons from North Korea are seen on the ground near the presidential office in Seoul, Oct. 24. South Korea carried out its first pan-government exercise to test its preparedness against a potential bioterrorist attack using smallpox, Tuesday, amid growing security concerns about rubbish-filled balloons sent by the North Korean regime. Newsis

South Korea carried out its first pan-government exercise to test its preparedness against a potential bioterrorist attack using smallpox, Tuesday, amid growing security concerns about rubbish-filled balloons sent by the North Korean regime.

Led by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), 10 organizations including the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the National Counter Terrorism Center participated in the drill to strengthen their joint readiness under a realistic scenario of terrorist attack.

"This smallpox exercise is the first one of its kind conducted to test the country's response system against bioterrorism threats, reflecting risks such as a large quantity of unidentified parcels shipped from overseas and trash-carrying balloons (coming from North Korea)," the KDCA said in a statement.

Smallpox has been eradicated, thanks to a successful worldwide vaccination campaign in the 20th century. No one has gotten smallpox naturally since 1977. But it is possible that the variola virus — which causes smallpox — could be used in a biological attack.

If infected, the mortality rate of the disease for an unvaccinated individual is between 20 to 50 percent, according to the KDCA.

In the past, some countries weaponized the virus. The risk of its spread still remains today, given that at least two nations — the United States and Russia, an ally of North Korea — are known to have housed samples of the smallpox virus.

North Korea is believed to possess the world's third-largest stockpile of chemical weapons, ranging from 2,500 to 5,000 metric tons. Over the past several months, it has been sending thousands of balloons, filled with trash and other materials, into the South, raising concerns about the possibility that the balloons could be used as a means of bioterrorism.

If a suspected smallpox virus is released into the South as a bioterrorist attack, public health authorities should share that information with counterterrorism organizations immediately before issuing a public alert and launching a disaster response body to handle the crisis.

If experts confirm the illness is smallpox, the government should conduct an epidemiologic investigation and, if necessary, mass vaccinations while communicating effectively with the public to minimize confusion.

"The exercise was designed to check the entire response system from the initial stages of a bioterrorism attack to the recovery process," KDCA Commissioner Jee Young-mee said. "This drill, conducted under a national crisis scenario, is expected to reaffirm the roles of related ministries and enable a rapid joint response in the event of a crisis."

She said bioterrorism is a complex challenge that could plunge the nation into chaos, adding that training is imperative to respond effectively to such a crisis.

This exercise follows a media report that South Korea's first anthrax vaccine could soon be approved amid growing security concerns over the North Korean balloons.

According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the vaccine, co-developed by the KDCA and GC Biopharma, is under review for approval. In the past, anthrax, along with smallpox, had been used by some countries as a biological weapon.