Sen. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., said today that he was impressed with how prepared Austin is to deal with a terrorist attack.

"If anything would happen here, Austin and Mower County would be as prepared as anyone else in the nation," Dayton said.

Dayton met today with Mayor Bonnie Rietz and city officials to find out what more can be done and what he can do to help with the effort to fight terrorism.

He is working to get federal money for Austin and other Minnesota cities to help purchase equipment necessary in dealing with attacks. There is $2.3 billion in new funding this year for that exact purpose, he said.

"It is needed, especially with the budget crisis and it's got to come from the federal government," Dayton said.

He said that the money would go toward purchasing equipment, such as masks and suits, for the police and fire department. Health services also needs money for things like smallpox vaccinations.

Getting that money, however, is difficult, Dayton said, because filling out the grant applications is long and complicated. He said that the process needs to be changed.

Dayton said that while the chances of Austin being attacked were very slim, it is important for everyone to be prepared.

"You never know when that .1 or .01 percent of the sites might need to be called on to respond," he said.

He said because America is so large, physically, economically and in almost every other aspect, there are many opportunities for terrorists to strike.

"Nationwide the amount of preparation has been enormous," Dayton said. "However there are so many seams there for people to look at."

Matt Merritt can be reached at 434-2214 or by email at :mailto matt.merritt@austindailyherald.com