InfoGram

January 30, 2003

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 usfacipc@dhs.gov.

CIP Considerations for Maritime Firefighting

A myriad of ships and boats, piers and docks, buildings and warehouses, trucks and trains, and petrochemical tank farms contribute to the challenges or complexities of fighting fires at American seaports. Now add to this reality the possibility of an overt or covert terrorist attack using weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The plausible outcomes of this combination seem almost daunting and insurmountable even for well-trained firefighters. Nevertheless, those fire departments at or adjacent to a maritime environment must be prepared to contend with these adversities in a manner that protects the most critical of infrastructures-their personnel.

Although the U.S. Coast Guard is the lead agency for port security and safety, it does not have the resources and training to efficiently control natural and man-made emergencies in our nation's waterways and seaports. It is not equipped to manage large-scale marine incidents or to address consequence management outside of oil spills. Lacking the assets and legal mandate to fight fires, the Coast Guard remains in a supporting federal position and expects local ire departments to respond to ship and terminal fires as well as incidents involving hazardous materials.

Senior fire leaders recognize that many vessels are huge, transport millions of gallons of hazardous materials and, in the case of cruise ships, thousands of passengers and crew. They know that a poorly handled fire could result in the sinking of a ship in a busy channel or berth, devastation to bridges or underwater tunnels, and severe ecological damage. Therefore, chief officers fully realize that firefighters unfamiliar with the unique hazards posed by marine operations are much more likely to be injured or killed.

Modest investments now in specialized planning, training, and equipment can prove extremely cost effective when compared to projected personnel losses and collateral damage from a maritime response. Given the current threat condition, the CIPIC suggests the following:

• Protocols to ensure terminal or shipboard fires are safe to extinguish.
• Procedures to determine that marine fires do not include WMD.
• Specific firefighter training for dockside or shipboard emergencies.
• Command structures and communications to manage a major seaport incident.
• Acquisition of marine fireboats as necessary and affordable.

Preparing firefighters to combat fires and mitigate other emergencies at American ports will assist the preservation of vital links to international trade and commerce while safeguarding the critical infrastructures of the responding departments.

Enhancing CIP with the News Media

The requirement for 24-hour coverage places the news media under extraordinary pressure to deliver real-time informationto the public. This compulsion can lead to speculation with the potential to endanger critical infrastructures and citizens. Unfortunately, this is a no-nonsense problem, particularly for those communities occupied by a man-made or natural disaster.

Ignorance and misinformation can damage community infrastructure protection, cause paralysis among citizens, and confuse people trying to respond to a crisis. These probabilities make the strength of the news media more important than ever. They are the main communication conduits to the public capable of carrying valuable information from one place to another. With frequent releases of properly guided and packaged information, the news media can be an effective part of a community's response to an emergency.

Unless the public is well-informed, it will not know how to minimize panic and react in ways that preserve life and protect critical infrastructures. Therefore, the CIPIC maintains that getting quality information to the public in the midst of a crisis can be essential to the actions of emergency first responders. Since the new media focuses on rapid information dissemination, radio announcers and journalists can significantly contribute to saving lives and infrastructures. By the efficient delivery of completely reliable information fully processed through or coordinated with community leaders, including those of the emergency services, media personnel can provide meaningful assistance to all response and recovery operations.

The CIPIC recommends that municipal leaders develop strong, positive connections with the news media, and create new communication strategies for using media sources to cut through the chaos of any catastrophe.

Physical Security Vulnerability

The 23 January New York Times reported that a security researcher discovered a little-known vulnerability in many door locks that lets a person create a copy of the master key for an entire building by starting with any key from that building. Matt Blaze of AT&T Labs-Research conveyed that the illicit master key can be used without resorting to removing the lock and taking it apart. He continued that use of the illicit key leaves no evidence of tampering or other suspicious indicators that give away ordinary lock pickers.

All that is needed, Mr. Blaze wrote, is access to a key and to the lock that it opens, as well as a small number of uncut key blanks and a tool to cut them to the proper shape. "No special skills or tools are required; key-cutting machines costing hundreds of dollars apiece make the task easier, but the same results can be achieved with a simple metal file." He stated, "The technique required only a few minutes to carry out, even when using a file to cut the keys."

Mark Weber Tobias, a locks expert who works as a security consultant to law enforcement agencies, said the technique could open doors worldwide for criminals and terrorists. "I view the problem as pretty serious." He said, "The technique was so simple that even an idiot could do it."

Considering this new physical security vulnerability, the CIPIC advises that all emergency first response organizations review their key control procedures to ensure facility keys do not get into the hands of non-department personnel. For example, what are the provisions for a key that is lost or stolen? The CIPIC recommends the following minimum key control procedures:

• Appoint a responsible key control officer.
• Require personnel to sign for all department keys in their possession.
• Conduct a semi-annual accounting for all station, apparatus, and equipment keys.
• Obligate an employee who loses a key to pay for the replacement of all related locks and keys if it can be proven that the loss is because of negligence.

Acid Bomb Threat

According to an article by Blaine Dionne, an associate editor of the Journal of Emergency Medical Services, EMS and firefighters in rural Florida have recently responded to a number of calls involving acid bombs. Most of the bombing incidents appear to involve teenage pranksters who deploy their homemade bombs inside of mailboxes.

The article explains that the bombs are made simplistically by combining muratic acid with aluminum strips in a two-liter soda bottle. "Depending on the amount of acid and aluminum used, the chemical reaction expands the gas inside the bottle until the pressure causes an explosion of acid spewing everywhere." This acid is extremely strong and can cause major damage to the body on exposure, said Mark O'Keefe, the public information officer for EVAC Ambulance in Volusia County, Florida. "Because it is normally used to scrub the sides of pools to remove chlorine and fungus, you can buy it at Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and similar home improvement centers."

Mr. O'Keefe cautioned that anyone can make an acid bomb and, therefore, emergency responders must be aware of its potential as a secondary device at any scene. To avoid having responders become victims of a possible secondary device, he suggested getting a thorough description of the scene conditions. "One of the most important indicators is a good pre-arrival questioning by the 9-1-1 telecommunicator." He further expressed that dispatchers need to elicit everything they can from the caller. "If you have an explosive device, you want to determine what kind of device you're dealing with and what hazards your crews may be exposed to."