InfoGram

March 6, 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.

Fire/EMS Activities for Level Yellow (Elevated)

The 13 February InfoGram offered a list of activities appropriate for the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) Level Orange (High) to protect critical infrastructures of the fire and emergency medical services. A week ago, the federal government returned the HSAS Level to Yellow (Elevated). This change generated several phone calls and electronic messages to the CIPIC regarding the availability of a formal, complete listing of fire/EMS department actions for HSAS Levels Red (Severe) and Yellow (Elevated). In response to these requests, the recommended expedient behaviors for Level Yellow, where the nation is now, can be seen below. The CIPIC will study and plan to suggest conduct for Level Red in a future InfoGram.

As a guide for performance in HSAS Level Yellow (Elevated), the CIPIC proposes the following to protect the critical infrastructures of fire/EMS departments:

• Keep personnel informed in order to stop rumors and prevent unnecessary alarm.
• Periodically inspect the security and condition of all facilities and HVAC systems.
• Use exterior lighting during periods of limited visibility.
• Lock all facilities and require access control.
• Secure all apparatus and equipment when not in use.
• Watch for and report suspicious activities inside and outside all facilities.
• Familiarize personnel with fire station and community evacuation plans.
• Ensure availability of surplus food, water, non-prescription medicines, equipment, and supplies.
• Guarantee procedures exist for apparatus and equipment repair and maintenance under emergency circumstances.
• Increase capabilities for dealing with hazardous materials and weapons.
• Test security and emergency communication equipment, procedures, and protocols.
• Update and expand dependable communication procedures for exchanging operational information with other agencies and departments.
• Network with local law enforcement for intelligence applicable to fire/EMS missions and the protection of department critical infrastructures.
• Conduct a new threat analysis and vulnerability assessment of department critical infrastructures.
• Apply countermeasures to protect threatened and vulnerable infrastructures.
• Implement screening practices for incoming postal and electronic mail, phone calls, deliveries, and visitors.
• Organize a Family Support Team from among the spouses of firefighters and EMS personnel to care for each other during emergencies.
• Familiarize with crisis action plans of local schools, hospitals, businesses, and industry.
• Review, revise, or implement as necessary the (FIRESCOPE) Incident Command System and Unified Command System.
• Identify the needs of the community during major incidents and consider the strategic location of necessary resources to meet those needs.
• Assess threats and vulnerabilities across the community to create specific response plans for key locations.
• Ascertain the changes made at the county and state levels and how those changes may affect local operations.
• Refine alternate route plans to community critical infrastructures to reflect current road and traffic conditions.
• Meet with the local emergency planning committee (or its equivalent) to decide what must be done, who will do it, and when will it be done.
• Coordinate local operations plans with adjacent or nearby communities.
• Activate agreements for mutual aid from agencies and departments in surrounding areas.
• Review or revise as necessary all emergency response, mitigation, and recovery plans.
• Require personnel to refresh their comprehension of local operations plans.
• Prioritize training and investments in new resources to accomplish response plans.
• Rehearse plans with exercises or drills as much as practicable and affordable.

Community Countermeasures Coordination

Armed with a vulnerability assessment, a city's Department of Environmental Protection, which is responsible for protecting the municipality's vast watershed, recently closed a road that runs over their major reservoir and its large dam. This action was taken apparently without advance notice or any discussion of the consequences. The following day there were rush-hour traffic jams that delayed the arrival of volunteer firefighters, hindered the movement of their engines to a fire incident, and blocked police access to a separate investigation.

Since 11 September 2001, many local governments throughout the United States initiated countermeasures to protect critical infrastructures. Several of these localities reported that doing so occasionally created some expected and unexpected friction among community stakeholders. After taking corrective action to eliminate disruptive friction, a few local leaders admitted to an important lesson-learned about the infrastructure protection process. They adamantly maintained that there is a tremendous necessity for thorough coordination of protective measures among all local stakeholders (e.g., elected leaders, fire/EMS, police, medical, utilities, commerce, etc.).

Countermeasures are any protective actions that reduce or prevent the degradation or loss of a critical infrastructure to man-made or natural disasters. They frequently preserve the ability of emergency first responders to effectively perform their services. Decisions requiring the application of countermeasures will almost always affect people, time, and materials. Therefore, the CIPIC must endorse the complete lateral and vertical coordination of all countermeasures prior to implementation. Getting stakeholders around the conference table is essential to the ultimate success of critical infrastructure protection.

Concern for Schools and Campuses

In a recent New York Times article, the president of the National School Safety and Security Services stated that schools and campuses are "soft targets for terrorism because they lack a high level of security and emergency preparedness." He claimed that too many schools have been "preoccupied with student violence and substance abuse." Furthermore, in a nationwide survey of more than 650 colleges, 95% of campus police officers said their schools are vulnerable and not adequately prepared to respond to an attack.

Given this unfavorable preparedness report, the CIPIC encourages leaders of the emergency response sector to contact the senior administrators of local schools and colleges. Chief officers can offer their encouragement and assistance to these learning centers as they develop quality crisis action and emergency response plans to ensure substantial readiness for incapacitating events affecting students, faculty, and facilities.

Among the most important things to be accomplished in this endeavor will be the harmonious integration of the school's plans with the emergency response plans of the community in which the teaching establishment resides. The benefits of coordinating and integrating emergency plans among the schools, first responders, and the community cannot be over-emphasized.

Interagency Geospatial Preparedness Team

In a 3 March press release, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced it established an Interagency Geospatial Preparedness Team (IGPT) to help make geospatial information and technologies (e.g., remote sensing, mapping, predictive modeling, charting, and geographic information systems) more readily available to the national community of emergency managers and responders. Geospatial experts from FEMA, the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, U.S. Geological Survey, and U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service will lead the interagency team.

The IGPT will identify geospatial activities, policies, and products that will increase the effectiveness of emergency preparedness and response activities on a national scale. Specifically, the team will assess the need for geospatial resources to support all hazards emergency management and the availability of geospatial information, systems, and expertise. The team will evaluate the gap between the requirements, information holdings, system capabilities, and expertise; identify critical geospatial tools and services for federal, state, and local emergency managers and responders; facilitate improved interoperability and sharing of geospatial resources; and will help to coordinate federal geospatial resources and initiatives relevant to national preparedness.

The IGPT can be reached at FEMA Headquarters for more information.