InfoGram

April 28, 2005

NOTE: This InfoGram will be distributed weekly to provide members of the Emergency Services Sector with information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures. For further information, contact the Emergency Management and Response - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) at (301) 447-1325 or by email at emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov.

Another Perspective of CIP

Less than ten years ago, the terms "critical infrastructure" and "critical infrastructure protection" were absent from the vocabulary of many state and local leaders. This began to change in October 1997, when the President's Commission on Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) issued its report recommending a national effort to assure the security of America's critical infrastructures. Culminating an interagency effort to evaluate this recommendation and produce an innovative framework for CIP, Presidential Decision Directive-63 (PDD-63) was issued in May 1998. The document initiated a nationwide momentum to unify the public and private sectors and "swiftly eliminate any significant vulnerability to both physical and cyber attacks on our critical infrastructures." PDD-63 was superseded in December 2003 by Homeland Security Presidential Directive-7 (HSPD-7).

Consistently, the EMR-ISAC has written that the critical infrastructures of the Emergency Services Sector (ESS) are the personnel, physical assets, and communication/cyber systems that must be intact and operational 24x7 to ensure "response-ability" for all incidents and hazards. In other words, ESS critical infrastructures are the key people, equipment, and systems necessary for mission accomplishment-the individuals and things that keep the nation's emergency services "in business" regardless of circumstances. On a local, operational level this correctly implies that CIP is about protecting the aforementioned from any incapacitation or destruction.

There is another perspective of CIP offered for consideration by ESS decision-makers. It is a somewhat different understanding about what is really being protected. On the operational level it is certainly the people and objects (i.e., infrastructures) discussed in the preceding paragraph. However, from a national, strategic level perception it is actually the "services" or mission-essential tasks performed by emergency responders for society that warrants attention, protection, and perpetuation. The emphasis here is clearly on the "services" that ESS departments and agencies provide. Despite the perspective, and many other daily demands on time and resources, the EMR-ISAC encourages the ESS leadership to know and practice CIP within their departments or agencies. More information about CIP can be obtained at www.usfa.fema.gov/subjects/emr-isac, email emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov, or phone at 301-447-1325.

Hurricane Preparedness

Emergency managers attending a recent conference confirmed that countless victims are still dealing with the effects of last year's hurricanes. Conference participants verified that "many home and business owners have not yet settled with their insurance companies, many of these homes and businesses still have the blue tarps on their roofs, and many families are still in temporary trailers." In spite of this, the 2005 hurricane season is quickly approaching. This summer's hurricanes have the potential to harm more people and property, and degrade or destroy the critical infrastructures of emergency responders as occurred in 2004. Therefore, the EMR-ISAC agrees that the battle against hurricanes is won in the off-season. "We need to prepare for what's going to happen, but we also have to prepare for what can happen," said the director of the Maryland Emergency Management Agency.

Comprehensive community-based mitigation and preparedness planning will reduce the degradation or destruction of critical infrastructures and alleviate the risks to lives and property. Well-designed plans for hurricanes include input from most segments of the municipality initiated by local and/or regional emergency managers. These community leaders of areas affected by the 2004 hurricane season discussed the following additional lessons-learned:

• Remember that hurricanes are not just coastal problems.
• Ensure proper back-up and replacements for the emergency response staff.
• Maintain daily coordination with local weather forecasting offices.
• Conduct pre-storm planning to acquire storage and service facilities.
• Complete an evacuation study to prepare evacuation zones, lengths, and routes.
• Don't forget hurricanes are especially life-threatening when emergency services are lost.

National Gang Threat Assessment

The behavior of gangs in the United States threatens local critical infrastructures and presents a real danger to internal national security. With violence, drugs, and other crimes, gangs diminish American quality of life by causing fear, economic loss, or worse. Furthermore, these hostile criminal groups adversely affect public safety, community image, and citizen morale.

To ensure and enhance public safety, the National Alliance of Gang Investigators Associations (NAGIA) was created to assist agencies with a national level and coordinated response to this threat. NAGIA activities include the consolidation and distribution of information, the standardization of training, and the creation of a close partnership among federal, state, and local public safety agencies. It is a cooperative organization currently composed of leaders from 16 regional gang investigator associations representing over 15,000 gang investigators across the country, as well as federal agencies and other organizations involved in gang-related matters.

In partnership with the FBI, NAGIA prepared the 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment to provide a national and regional picture of the threat posed by gangs. It is anticipated that this assessment will help federal, state, and local policymakers and public safety administrators understand the dimensions of the gang problem and assist them in formulating policy and allocating resources. The document of 61 pages (1.6MB) can be downloaded from the following NAGIA website: http://www.nagia.org/national_gang_threat_assessment.htm. Additional information about gangs may be found at the NAGIA website: http://www.nagia.org.

800 MHz Band Reconfiguration

During the past several years, public safety radio systems have been increasingly experiencing equipment interference problems and communications "dead zones" as a result of technically incompatible commercial wireless systems operating in the same or adjacent spectrum bands. This issue has become more problematic as commercial cellular systems have flourished and the emergency services systems (e.g., police, fire, EMS) have become more widespread. After thoroughly studying the problem and recognizing the unacceptable disruption to the communications infrastructure of the Emergency Services Sector, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ordered a reconfiguration of the 800 MHz band to alleviate any interference between emergency services and commercial radio systems.

The FCC order will move emergency services licensees to lower segments of the 800 MHz band and commercial cellular networks to higher segments. The licensees affected by this order will be required to relocate within the guidelines presented in the Quick Reference Guide. This document of 18 pages (dated April 21, 2005) provides an overview of the Band Reconfiguration and the planning steps that licensees need to consider in preparing to relocate as directed. The Guide is available to download at: http://www.800ta.org/PDFs/guide.pdf (PDF, Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Help). More complete guidance can be found in the Reconfiguration Handbook of 58 pages (dated April 21, 2005) seen at: http://www.800ta.org/PDFs/handbook.pdf (PDF, Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Help).