Exclusive: Inside the defence labs that deal with the world's most deadly substances

[@nearestyoutube]

I used to work in a Containment Level 3, microbiologist as well. That guy is so serious lol, but in this case I think that's a good thing. Right sort of person in this field

BSL3 or is that Canuckistan nomenclature?

[@dammitdan106]

Lay people have zero idea how sloppy and arrogant "scientists" can be when handling pathogens, isotopes and toxic chemicals. The P3, now called BSL3 facility demonstrated here has engineered redundancy to contain more handling mishaps, thank God.

[@HULLGRAFFITI]

When they have something like bubonic plague do they keep a sample from decades ago frozen and keep dipping into it or keep 'growing' new samples from what I assume would be an original sample ? and do these things come in strength or qualities or is bubonic plague just the same thing the world over ? Cheers

[@CausticLemons7]

@@HULLGRAFFITI Good question. I wonder if they keep something like original strain and mutated samples.

[@predatortheme]

@@CausticLemons7 i would think so, there are institutes which have 50 year old straits up to the newest strains of certain bacterias stored with every generation inbetween for especially these purposes and seeing how bacteria evolve

[@Connor-Colyer]

“Remember, that’s plague”

[@haifutter4166]

No pressure at all. 😂 As a lab technician myself its always funny to watch clumsy people in the lab. They allways underestimate how precise every movement has to be in environments that should stay sterile.

[@dammitdan106]

It's likely just buffer solution with same molecular weight, color and viscosity used to grow the bacteria, not actual *Y. pestis.*

[@chrismac2234]

He did say "if this was for real"

[@顏梅王]

Dstl

[@Kado1609]

try to keep us safe by making gain of function research and then proceed to use the viruses you've altered in labs and put it into the public... (corona virus)

[@JettisonTheSupreme]

The professor was not impressed with the poor reporter lol

[@Scythl]

​@@Вивсівідстійno she is trying to communicate what they do to people who don't know the basics, which is absolutely a worthwhile endeavour. The professor was showing how hard the work is and how careful you must be

[@ScotlandTheBrave_1]

He’s not even got goggles on so he can’t even talk

[@honkeykong9563]

If he wasn't impressed he wouldn't have told her that he must now examine her for contagion and he's afraid she will have to be rather naked.

[@kawardt6784]

@@ВивсівідстійI think she's great, so dont think too highly about yourself russian boy

[@anneke_yep2407]

@@ScotlandTheBrave_1they did say the decontaminated everything before she got there

[@ChasinTheLife]

How cool and scary would that job be! Kudos to these people that work behind the scenes to keep us safe.

[@nikkim3367]

I feel so much more secure knowing that the identity of those coat racks is safe.

[@florianspf]

been looking for this comment haha

[@coconutzrule5935]

WHY DID THE BLUR THAT THO LOL. I had to watch it twice to ensure I saw it right the first time

[@mart34]

It was a cloak-and-dagger situation!

[@michaelfagan2086]

I assume because it has the names of the scientists on it

[@Thataussiebattler]

In you come Hanna! "Coughs on her". Hilarious.

[@SilentStudioExplores]

Twice now...😅

[@Neurotik51]

that wasn't a cough he was clearing his throat wtf

[@SilentStudioExplores]

@@Neurotik51 wtf... 🥴

[@Kielbasa_Starmer]

I had the chance to see behind the curtain as a contractor of BSL-4 at Porton Down under armed guard, bound by NDA and secrecy act but what an eye opener. Glad they're on our side.

[@ge2623]

For now.

[@Kielbasa_Starmer]

@@ge2623 believe me it won't come from them

[@danielfreeman1204]

They are NOT on our side.....

[@TSHKKRipper]

Once they are out of lab, you never know whose side they will be.

[@Kielbasa_Starmer]

@@TSHKKRipper with the level of security, qualification and vetting they have and the fact they're just like the rest of us I'm confident. The heads of department and owners are the one's to be wary of

[@Monkey_D_Luffy56]

They shouldn't allowed carefree journalist on these kind of facilities. It's quite frightening how she acts like it's just a play pretend

[@MrMoo272]

it was just play pretend. You think they'd go through the hassle of making 4 levels of containment and then just let anyone in and use it? I can almost assure you that every room she walked through contained no accessible pathogens or toxins.

[@Deoxyskian]

yeah

[@Jonathan_Doe_]

“You found it difficult to get the tops off”… Maybe come up with a system where people don’t have to unscrew tiny lids one handed then.

[@ScotlandTheBrave_1]

They already exist, my lab has them

[@mrslinkydragon9910]

It's not that hard, hold the thing with the ring and little finger, use the index and thumb to unscrew the cap

[@lagrangiankid378]

It just takes a little practice. It's not that difficult.

[@SaveUsfromHarris]

If you can crack an egg in two separate halves with one hand without breaking the yolk your good.

[@TheTerribleGamingzone]

The less tools, the less waste or decontamination

[@erickhuntsman240]

I can't imagine the stress of working in one of these labs. especially the first few years. you're stretching to reach something and feel air being pushed into your suit. dropped a sharp and pierced the suit. etc etc

[@aliencrafter_]

Luckily you'd feel the air leaving your suit, not any better psychologically but eh

[@mrelectronicsdude]

Fascinating insight to DSTL. Thanks for showing us.

[@MostlyPennyCat]

My wife could've worked there when she graduated, in the hot labs. In the end she chose to pursue her career in the NHS

[@Bluetoothedshark]

My half sister qualified as a lab scientist. She then went back to university and got paramedic qualified and became a paramedic in the Newcastle area. I don't really know her, but I'm proud of her.

[@iliaviwara1442]

That pathway is better and safer.

[@MostlyPennyCat]

@@Bluetoothedshark Good for you and her then, buddy. It's good when people's careers come together. What do you do?

[@MostlyPennyCat]

@@iliaviwara1442 What, the NHS? Yep! Much safer.

[@What_is_wrong_with_this_world]

Ok

[@sandalphoncpu]

Surely they don’t allow kids to be in the facility right. I mean what was the journalist doing acting so carefree in a place as dangerous as that.

[@anneke_yep2407]

They disinfected that area before she got there

[@davidmonkman6677]

Good that we have people trying to protect us from pathogens

[@jackmehauf542]

No 😂 their working on making them more deadly and getting anti virus for the weapons they create! Their weapons!

[@I-am-not-a-number]

Whilst making pathogens.

[@I-am-not-a-number]

@robertstallard7836 What could possibly go wrong?

[@_c_y_p_3]

@@I-am-not-a-number in the three years since you became an expert conspiracy pusher it would only take you a few months to take the basic courses so you could have the competence to speak on this topic, which you obviously lack.

[@I-am-not-a-number]

@@_c_y_p_3 what conspiracy are you referring too?

[@Daimo83]

Man made horrors beyond my comprehension

[@ex1tium]

Not disagreeing with you but most of this stuff nature made first and mankind weaponized them, technology is just about to reach the point where we can create our own designs from scratch. Scary stuff. I truly do not miss the bio/chemical/nuclear drills we had to go through in the military. I'd rather take the exit by nuclear warhead than any of the bio/chemical weapon stuff.

[@SilentStudioExplores]

Creating new hazards and creating a cure for it at the same time 😅

[@HULLGRAFFITI]

Pathogens are natural , It's not 'man made' it's 'man controlled'

[@sid35gb]

No it’s what occurs in nature that is scary. All it takes is something to crawl out of the extreme environments of the world. Zoonotic disease is terrifying if you knew what drives it you would realise how dangerous animal agriculture and eating animals is to our health. all the pandemics that have occurred around the world have come from diseases transmitted from animals to humans.

[@georgemorley1029]

Plague?

[@buddytoups1129]

Guessing the wohan lab skipped one of the doors.

[@nemesiswes426]

🤣🤣🤣

[@Aztesticals]

I know that's a joke. But like you know the whole pandemic I'd because rich Chinese millionaires snort pangolin scales and eat raw bats at an aphrodisiac to get hard. That's not a joke. They snorted covid

[@km077]

more like all of 'em💀

[@volkerkalhoefer3973]

They overhauled their ventilation systems in Sept. 2019😇

[@analogueoverdigital929]

😂😂😂 I'm impressed this comment is still up. 👏

[@kcedd_a]

Cat the Microbiologist lowkey a baddie

[@gosie-z]

Ayooo...i see im not the only one. What's her insta? Lol.

[@aeroAdvocate]

Not very low key. 😆

[@0311catholic]

Your totally right

[@xmantheeevee]

I'm an American bio/chem major and this is very, very cool to me, because research in a laboratory is what I want to do and it's quite awesome seeing what a place where I could end up one day is like

[@dunnobutwayne]

no u not

[@lemonextract1325]

You’re so brave I can’t imagine doing something like this!!! 😭

[@russellhammond371]

Love contributing as a safety officer. Luckily, ours is only a BSL-2 lab, so I'm not the nervous wreck I would be working somewhere like this.

[@rachelread1346]

I live not too far from this place.... Scarey when you find out what they do there ... Thanks for keeping it all contained 😅😅

[@KX36]

Amazing how in this place the equipment they have for level 3 is basically level 4, e.g. with positive pressure suits; but in hospital path labs the equipment we have for level 3 is basically level 2. 0:27 this is what our CL3 lab looks like and we handle ACDP HG3 annex 1 agents without even the cabinet.

[@jameson1239]

To be fair they also work with chemical and radiological hazards

[@189643478]

Ebola was discovered when blood of an infected nun was brought to the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp where the scientist analyzed it on an ordinary lab bench... The vials had been shipped in a thermos flask with ice cubes and one of the vials had broken during transport... I am glad that we're more careful today...

[@christopherleubner6633]

That looked a lot like a BSL 4 minus the airlock and multiply redundant PPE. The cell was probably a training lab for BSL 4 work. Same lab coat color code too, white 1 and 2, yellow 3, red 4. Another give away that it was a dedicated training lab was that it didn't need biometric ID to get in. 😮

[@KX36]

@@christopherleubner6633 I think you're right

[@christinabelmares2840]

Thankful for the people working on PPE for healthcare workers. Very interesting work! 👍🏻😮

[@markdiii]

real life "Umbrella Corporation"

[@jz9201]

I hope not 😅

[@clinotiumdiavoolo5005]

lobotomy corporation?

[@ScotlandTheBrave_1]

Why is she walking about without her legs covered and no goggles? Our labs require your legs to be covered, aka no shorts or skirts, at all times and use closed shoes

[@davidf2244]

The room has been prepared for this segment.

[@vasiovasio]

@@davidf2244 Or, She is a Pure Angel! :)

[@MZ95]

Skank

[@Narxes081206]

I was thinking the same. My guess is it was staged for this filming.

[@sarahmadethat]

In college I got kicked out of lab because there was an inch gap between my socks and the bottom of my jeans 😅 it’s taken VERY seriously, but rightfully so!

[@OntologicalShock777]

Maybe an ultraviolet light lamp can be added as a layer of extra sanitation when exiting the lab.

[@christopherleubner6633]

They do. They are installed with the lighting.

[@devenb1218]

Always wanted to do this. Thought it would've been my dream job and settled with a different field instead. Crazy they deal with such dangerous bacteria regularly

[@taco2050]

never thought id see a real life scp site

[@DJAlexParker]

1:20 blurring out coat rail lol, then unblurring

[@pjg_77]

Play it again slowly. The one on the left wall, you can see name tags in white blurred out.

[@FalloutFan011]

Wow, Cat is SUPER lucky to have gotten that position.. 5 years after getting my bachelor's of Biology and still nothing nowhere CLOSE to this cool and interesting of a job

[@Aawsomeguy]

I wouldn't want to be within a 100 miles of that lab

[@EdgarHernandez-df7eq]

“Allegedly, quite close to home”

[@zenithproject817]

Its terrifying when people drop dead from something you cant see with the naked eye🥶

[@Spencer.Lucas1991]

Omg, it’s soooo scary 😱😱 great job and be safe ♥️

[@baepple]

Can you imagine if there was a tear in that suit? Lol

[@20PINKluvr]

Didnt they show that in outbreak or contagion?

[@baepple]

@@20PINKluvr idk never saw the movies

[@0311catholic]

It has two layers and is pressurized

[@gairahadam5304]

The point is not about Biohazard but about people killing each other using biohazard

[@なディル]

One of the most dangerous jobs and sensitive jobs in the earth

[@Mia_Mar1a]

We stan that baddie w the glasses working in the lab, what a queen 🤩🤩🤩

[@kazkk2321]

I really wish I could work in such environments. Hell of a job

[@Cookingwithchefdanny]

Is this microbiology? Cause I find this stuff very fascinating

[@MrYega-zq7rz]

Yea it's to die for

[@GORDITO_de_LODI]

"Get the pathogen on the white cloth" walkes away 🤣 she probably started panicking..poor lady

[@sshep7119]

What most don't realize about ibuprofen and other NSAID is that they are isobutylphenylpropionic acids, the individual components are nothing to be taken lightly. The way the stand is broken down and synthesized, makes total sense that it can be beneficial to fighting off certain bacterial diseases.

[@0311catholic]

I guarded a similar place

[@Ithel-gd7ex]

Do they offer take out?

[@Yuro_OKy]

The male interviewee must have been undisputed staring contest champion.

[@crispybacon9917]

What happens if anything gets into the air? Do they burn the whole place down.

[@ronin_user]

Outstanding.

[@Tyler.i.81]

Where do you keep the aliens 👽

[@mwallace2922]

That's the question. 🤔🤔

[@mrslinkydragon9910]

Why are the coat hooked blurred out? 😂

[@Emblazed123]

Nuclear war leaks!

[@BushworldAventures]

They probably have people's names written on them.

[@kL07_]

Name tags

[@OldtricksForolddog]

I worked at porton down..putting in new labs...

[@MrShaneSunshine]

Is ignorance a substance?

[@StillAliveAndKicking_]

The internet has proven that it is communicable, and spreads fast.

[@KX36]

@@StillAliveAndKicking_ and is certainly abused.

[@samuelgarrod8327]

It depends how much you need to take.

[@Dantick09]

Yes, too much of it and you become communist

[@notsosuavemate]

Yes wide spread

[@JaiderChiu]

what would happen if they mixed all the deadliest viruses etc together...?

[@BushyHairedStranger]

7 DOORS!..from outside the facility into the pathogen containment chamber they passed through at least 7 doors, likely more than that.

[@tezzasbigbuz3933]

56 seconds on this is where we handle our worst pathogens coughs walking through the door no mask

[@tigertiger1699]

Let us all spend more on R & D

[@TheEzali]

Portland down is also THE go-to reference laboratory in the UK for infectious diseases. Depending on NHS trust or health care entity, the appropriate virology or microbiology consultant team(s) may request samples for referral confirmation serum, plasma, stool, swab, urine CSF, etc after test results come back from the RRL or primary reference laboratory. This is an essential part of our routine health care service, in addition to their research.

[@modacontempo4531]

Maxwell Smart & Agent 99 😂

[@HugoOchoa1]

why were the hangers blurred out? wtf

[@MothmanOfficialWva]

Most likely had names on them, or otherwise sensitive info.

[@Brucethegermanshepherd]

So who puts the stuff in side the chamber ? Lol

[@AlexanderMcCollum]

I don't know if it's the fact that I've worked around this stuff but he missed a perfect opportunity to turn around and go oh I didn't mean to open that door😂

[@siddharthaghimire2415]

Internet needs such security,layer wise ..to seperate various sectors based on Infection and remove pathogens who plague internet.

[@jshoe1986]

Porton down ?

[@jakedovey7488]

Yes, dstl is the official name for porton down!

[@lmaoroflcopter]

​@@jakedovey7488 Er DSTL is the name of the parent company. Porton Down is this specific lab's location. DSTL do more than just bio safety.

[@peterharris38]

I used to do alcohol deliveries to Porton Down in the early 80s, very odd place. No birds not many visible humans and escort from gate-delivery-gate. Hadn't thought about it for almost 40 years. Thank you for the memory.

[@thebigeasy87]

​@@peterharris38similar experience for me, I delivered to a sister site. Eerily quiet

[@CivicYt]

Nature says "good luck humanity"

[@johnmarkey4862]

Very interesting

[@drekelley2352]

If its that hazardous then how do they create the plagues in the valves in the first place?

[@mikerope5785]

Getting roasted on your serial dilutions is a vibe.

[@JohnStoddart1010]

Fascinating

[@amsf1]

Def not the job for me. Id think i had symptoms of every substance I handled. Hypochondriac settings on 1000 😂

[@alexandreperron6106]

Sadly, as long as we'll think in terms of "operational advantage", this world won't get better.

[@phillipandrewwright4521]

"Operational Advantage" refers to our Armed Forces being fully prepared to defend against pathogen attacks by certain enemies who, don't think the laws of war apply to them. Not, that we would use them ourselves.

[@alexandreperron6106]

@@phillipandrewwright4521 That's my point EXACTLY. As long as the world will think in terms of invasions and attacks, this world will stay at war, stay in conflict, stay completely locked in to a cycle of hurt and suffering. It's not the fact that USA or Canada wants an operational advantage itself, it's the fact that THE WHOLE WORLD thinks like that, with varying degrees of success. As long as policies like Mutually Assured Destructioin exist, we fail as a society. "The general sat and the lines on the map moved from side to side".

[@je25ff]

lol why are the coat hangers blurred?

[@JesusFollower43]

Jesus loves you

[@simgamelab3034]

she was most probably playing with juice from aldi

[@surfleetsurfer6370]

Why does this woman reporter find the handling exercise funny? She should take it seriously.

[@welshdefenceforces]

Have you watched any of there other videos?

[@surfleetsurfer6370]

@@welshdefenceforces ……no…..because of this reporter’s attitude that it was all a bit of a laugh. War and all that’s associated with it isn’t a laughing matter.

[@ac979]

The reporter is fineeee 🔥

[@gunners4129]

I once saw Brad Pitt have a breakthrough in this lab

[@josearias306]

Protect the young scientists Ms. Cat

[@Texas_Made6990]

1:23 why the hell were the coat hangers blurred lmao and not the signs next to them.

[@hudsongalanou5647]

Why blur out the coat racks?

[@JamesSmith-mo4yt]

Maybe there were name tags?

[@UndisturbedMonk]

@@JamesSmith-mo4yt That should be common sense right?! Some people...

[@JustMe-12345]

One thing i just wondered..... why dont they use robots? Like for example the da vinci robot is used for surgeries. So like this they could be in a seperate room to control the robot and therefore be safe

[@seanorjennifermcdonald4868]

Like thenwalking dead said theres so many infections we dont know about it scary.

[@Dannydawson1984]

28 days later for real

[@TheShadow89090]

Funfact ... creating bio and chemical weapons is suprisingly easy - with many blueprints avaliable for free on the internet

[@snyseb]

Why are coat racks blurred ? 😂

[@thebigeasy87]

Name tags

[@Jurian2004]

Government: *writes viruses down and stores it in a Doomsday box*

[@Me2-l4m]

Who looked at one vial over there in the corner says colvin two ready to be dispatched!

[@jaciwithairazonaandschleic8710]

Scary 😮

[@MSpight]

I feel like this type of facility should not be open to tours or allowing patrons to handle potential pathogens.

[@tjentertainmentstudio]

Why would they put all the pathogens all in one building. What if the single laboratory gets attacked or has a natural disaster affect it?...

[@utarionzo3099]

It’s not in one lab, you’ll find a lot of hospital and research labs across the UK all also have their own samples of these pathogens. This is simply the MoD’s one, NHS has a few as well.

[@MoreFootWork]

1:16 why they blure jacket handlers?

[@utarionzo3099]

@@MoreFootWork I assume because some may have name tags on them, and they don't want to release the names of general workers who have not consented to that

[@thebigeasy87]

I used to make regular visits to a DSTL site linked with this one, it did explosive forensics, not bio chem. 24/7 armed guards provided by specialist firearms officers. Before you can get anywhere near the labs, the security checkpoint is at the perimeter. If anything happens the whole site locks down and there are some seriously heavy doors keeping you out while reinforcements arrive if necessary.

[@amelliamendel2227]

​@@utarionzo3099yes, it's a security thing they didn't want people looking up the employees

[@mitcha4163]

Whats Cats @? She's cute as

[@gosie-z]

This comment is what I'm looking for. Lol.

[@yaykruser]

1:21 why are the cost hooks censored?

[@rjohn00]

Name tags

[@ed1t3d]

1:16 why'd they blur the coat hooks

[@louisnemzer6801]

"Imagine there was an outbreak of a deadly new virus in Wiltshire and we shrugged off the fact that the outbreak 'just so happened' to be near a little place called Porton Down. We'd be laughed out of town." -Matt Hancock

[@andrewlavey6992]

What does the professor think about "The Andromeda Strain" (1971)?

[@zakmurphy3476]

I wonder why we have them

[@rjohn00]

Time to be educated dont let stupidity win

[@JohnJackson-mn4ts]

Keith Richards snorts lines of Anthrax for fun.

[@emorelix]

jesus, who makes the safety equipment and containment fields for these labs? I don't think you could make it less ergonomic

[@MattyT_86]

"one size fits all" I think. They do look clumsy to work in. I wonder how often spills - however small - happen?

[@lordofthehunt5384]

They're designed for safety/containment first and foremost so I imagine the human factors aspect is probably only an afterthought. There is also probably more usable equipment on the market but is too expensive or complex for the MoD/Government to use.

[@christopherleubner6633]

This was a training lab area. The dead giveaway was the lack of biometric identification devices to get in. ❤ The positive pressure suit is designed for one size fits most. In this case the suit was not truly positive pressure rather the cell had negative pressure so it was easy to get inside the suit and use it like a simulator rather than using the fully functional one. These suits are insanely expensive and have a limited number of uses before they are discarded. 😮

[@pedrosanchez-bc4zu]

where your fentanyl goes

[@Most_Trustworthy_Weasel]

I can't imagine what this is possibly hinting at

[@jordanpearson4824]

2020 called...

[@cameronlove1093]

why are the coat hangers blurred out? xD

[@muaaz.k]

1:16 what was the reason to blur the hangers out??

[@rjohn00]

Name tags