InfoGram

July 4, 2002

NOTE: This InfoGram will be distributed weekly to provide members of the emergency services sector with news and information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures. For further information please contact the U.S. Fire Administration's Critical Infrastructure Protection Information Center at (301) 447-1325 or email at email at usfacipc@dhs.gov.

Planning for Multiple Responses

Deliberate and accidental incidents continue to drain the resources of too many communities throughout the United States. Indeed, some localities have been challenged with having to contend with concurrent events enduring for long periods of time. Consequently, there is growing consensus among infrastructure protection specialists that all American municipalities must be prepared to conduct simultaneous response and mitigation operations at multiple locations.

The advocates of critical infrastructure protection firmly believe that the survivability and continuity of operations of local government and emergency responders will depend on quality planning, thorough coordination, and periodic rehearsals. These experts in the discipline maintain that cities and their emergency departments cannot disregard the urgent need for preparedness. They insist that communities must find the money and make the time to ensure readiness for multiple responses.

This entire endeavor can be resource-restrained and time-efficient. The exercise of common sense along with some innovation should prove sufficient in most cases. With some ingenuity and dedication, it will cost relatively little in time and money to review and update standard operating procedures, protocols for incident command, pre-incident plans, mutual aid agreements, automatic aid agreements, target hazards, etc. If these documents and procedures are intact, current, and practiced for synchronous operations, then existing deficiencies will be eliminated. Ordinarily, when shortcomings are removed, then the potential for the degradation or destruction of critical infrastructures is significantly reduced.

Budget Deficits Versus Infrastructure Protection

It becomes more apparent each day that budget deficits may become an undesirable reality for an increasing number of cities and their fire and emergency medical service departments. There is even some concern that the state of the economy as witnessed on Wall Street may adversely affect municipal government funding sources. Obviously, this is bad news at a time when citizens are depending on their emergency first responders to be, know, and do more. What will be the effect of budget shortages on staffing, supplies, and equipment? How will pension fund investments be preserved? What will be the effect on the protection of the critical infrastructures of emergency first responders? The answers to these questions are chief officers' business.

Chief officers recognize the extraordinary value of the service their departments provide to communities. They accept that failure to deliver this service to citizens is unthinkable. This is one of many reasons why chief officers are key leaders in their municipalities. As such, they have the additional burden to plan effectively for all contingencies including funding shortages.

Creatively planning ahead for anticipated money shortfalls will help to avoid any disruption or degradation to that which is most important: taking care of personnel, accomplishing sector missions, and protecting critical infrastructures. Realizing that there can be no "shortcuts" in any of these areas, department leaders must persist in identifying and applying the best practices to safeguard salaries and pensions while maintaining quality operations with adequately protected infrastructures. Clearly, this is easier said than done!

Are Terrorist Cyber Attacks Feasible?

According to a recent article in the Washington Post, government cyber security analysts recently announced the potential exists for the compromise of digital devices that allow remote access of Distributed Control Systems (DCS) and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition Systems (SCADA). They believe the ability to disable or take command of these systems could have severe repercussions on American critical infrastructures. Their position is based on information about the nation's infrastructures found in computers seized from al Qaeda suspects.

Over a year ago, the former head of the National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC) said "critical infrastructure owners and operators must protect their assets from cyber attacks, especially electrical systems, government agencies, and the emergency services." He and others indicated that their main concern is the possibility of a physical attack supplemented by a cyber attack such a shutting down the 9-1-1 system.

Last week, the NIPC commented that many terrorists have become more sophisticated in their activities, more familiar with technology, and more innovative in their targeting. "Although these groups have not yet conducted cyber attacks directly targeted at U.S. infrastructures, the trend indicates that attacks on cyber components of the infrastructure are the next logical step." NIPC specialists fear terrorists will likely use cyber attacks to complicate the response by authorities to the physical attack by delaying notification of emergency first responders and denying the local populace of vital life saving services.

When asked if this is an unreasonable scenario, Ronald Dick, current NIPC director replied: "not in this world; that's what keeps me awake at night." Hence, are terrorist cyber attacks feasible? Unfortunately, those responsible for the critical infrastructures of the emergency response sector (e.g., 9-1-1 centers) have no choice but to consider attacks feasible and to protect their cyber assets from degradation or destruction.

Unexploded Ordnance

Two days ago, a young woman walking near a Georgia lighthouse found a live fragmentation grenade that was approximately 40 years old. After unwisely transporting the grenade, and some subsequent excitement, a bomb disposal unit safely removed the piece of ordnance.

Finding unexploded ordnance, loaded weapons, and dangerous ammunition is a common event. Citizens frequently discover ordnance on and off active and former military installations. These unsafe materials are more often found abandoned inside American cities. Therefore, community leaders including emergency first responders must continuously warn residents to avoid touching any suspicious item and to immediately report its location. It is always possible that what may be found is a terrorist weapon intended to harm people and destroy critical infrastructures.