Parks and Recreation employees Kristen Smith, left, and Racheal Zajicek tie yellow ribbons around trees as a show of support to U.S. troops in Iraq.

As American forces wage war in Iraq, city officials are responding by doing everything from engaging in disaster drills to tying yellow ribbons around trees.

The potential danger of terrorist attacks as a result of U.S. military action overseas prompted the Burbank Police Department to increase its staffing, but Sgt. Bruce Speirs declined to say how many extra officers are in the field. He emphasized, however, that there is no specific information that Burbank is a target for terrorist acts.

In addition to more cops on patrol, Speirs said police officers are making themselves more visible and focusing their attention on locations that could be targets, such as the airport and film studios. Officials reviewed plans created following September 11, and concluded the provisions were still sufficient to handle a possible event, Speirs said.

We're keeping up on what's going on and are confident in our ability to respond to an incident," he said.

Various emergency responders, including the Fire Department's hazardous materials team and emergency-operations teams, have been doing extra training, said Fire Capt. Ron Barone, the city's acting disaster-preparedness coordinator. The drills have been underway for several weeks.

The renovated Emergency Operations Center is also up and running. The EOC, at the Fire Training Center is also up and running. The EOC at the Fire Training Center at 1845 Ontario St., is where city leaders gather in the event of any disaster.

Emergency planning is not the only war-related activity going on in the City. American flags were hung from the Olive Street overpass at the Golden State (5) Freeway, and city workers tied yellow ribbons around trees outside city buildings.

While police said they have received a few calls from concerned citizens, fear of chemical or biological attacks have not led to increased sales at Supply Sergeant, an army surplus store at 503 N. Victory Blvd., worker John Cordier said.

Other than the sale of a couple of gas masks, Cordier said there has been no increased demand for survival items. "I think most people pretty much got what they needed after 9/11," he said. "That's when it was really crazy."

For people who are concerned, Barone recommended they not panic and stock up on supplies like gas masks and duct tape. Instead, he suggested residents make the type of preparations they would for an earthquake. That includes keeping a radio and flashlights, as well as enough batteries, food, water and medication, to last 72 hours, he said.

In addition, Barone said fire officials are adding links to the department's Website with more information about disaster preparedness.