Remarks by Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge at the Miami-Dade Office of Emergency Management.

Release Date: 07/30/04 00:00:00

Miami, Fla.
July 30, 2004
(Remarks as Prepared)

Thank you, Chief Castillo, for that introduction. And thank you for having me. I know that after several long days of training exercises, the thing you most want to hear is a long speech, but I assure you that I won’t talk for more than an hour.

The work you are doing here is so important. It’s important to the people of the Miami area, and it is important to the security of our homeland. But you don’t need me to tell you that.  That’s because the first responder community – everyone from fire fighters and police officers to doctors and EMS personnel – already understands the importance of coordination, communication, and a commitment to those in need.

On September 11th, ordinary citizens such as you became extraordinary heroes.  On that fateful day, we saw firefighters run into buildings; EMS personnel rush to the scene; and men and women in uniform run patrols on the ground and secure our skies from further attack.

The medical community – like so many “first responders” – sprung into action that day as well, confronted by a situation many of us had never imagined.

Emergency room personnel prepared for a deluge of injuries, but saw mostly frantic family members in search of missing loved ones. Too many beds laid empty, awaiting survivors that never emerged from the rubble, but they were ready.

It’s what we have come to expect from brave men and women on police forces, in fire houses, and at hospitals who – on a daily basis – put our well-being ahead of their own.

Citizens here in South Florida – again in the grip of hurricane season – know what it’s like to have local heroes. They rely on your decision making, expertise, and – often times – your courage and bravery to keep them safe from the perils of Mother Nature. The same can be said for the evils of man.

Like natural disasters, terrorists strike indiscriminately, without regard for innocent lives, and often with devastating results.

It has been said that the men and women charged with our homeland’s security must be right more than a billion times per year and the terrorists only once.

It is something that the medical and first responder communities can relate to – patients, diseases, and emergencies do not take days off. Neither do the terrorists.

That is why you work so hard – with training sessions like this one – to be prepared for all emergencies, whether wrought by disaster or design.

At the Department of Homeland Security, we are trying to do the same thing – make emergency preparedness, response, and recovery the hallmarks of our homeland security effort.  And we are doing so on two tracks: first, building and maintaining an operational capacity in emergency response and, second, increasing the overall preparedness of the country.

Each is a vital element of the work of our Department, each is critical to our nation, and each is making our country – and citizens – more secure than we have ever been.

No one is better acquainted with the work of the Federal Emergency Management Agency than the people of South Florida. Many of you have worked hand in hand with these fine men and women who now call the Department of Homeland Security home.

So you know as well as I do, that FEMA represents the best of the federal government. Like you, I’ve seen their work first-hand, in the field, in the aftermath of Hurricane Isabel and the California wildfires. Americans affected by these disasters were relieved to see FEMA employees on the scene.

You’ve probably heard the joke about an official saying “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.” Well, the men and women of FEMA mean it.  

They have been assisting people during their moments of greatest need for 25 years. And their dedicated service continues; no matter where disasters strike, no matter what hardships must be overcome, they give people help and hope.

Whether at the site of the Oklahoma City bombings, Ground Zero and the Pentagon, or the path of a tornado or hurricane, FEMA helps us achieve our “all-hazards” mission, and I am proud to be working with them at the Department of Homeland Security.  

They are now adapting their traditional response and recovery expertise to include terrorism. And in the process, they are building and improving our operational capacity in this area, so that we are even better able to deal with acts of both man and Mother Nature.

When I say “operational capacity,” I essentially mean the kind of work you have done here over the last few days. I mean everyone knowing their job, having the tools and training they need to be successful at that job, and putting into place a system that ensures those jobs are coordinated for the best result.  

We cannot let anything impede the ability of brave men and women to save the lives of citizens as well as their own.

So this Department is determined to forge operational capacity when it comes to emergency response and recovery--quite simply, the capacity for governors and mayors, police and fire chiefs, hospital staff and EMS personnel to prepare for and respond to disasters of any kind.

I am pleased to say that we are already making great progress in this area. The Federal Government has improved communication – and coordination – with our partners at the state and local level.

For instance, amid the disasters wrought by Hurricane Isabel, the California wildfires, and last year’s August blackout, the hard work of early preparation meant faster deployment of resources and manpower – so that assistance was available and ready to turnaround at a moment’s notice.

In addition, thanks to secure communications, expanded security clearances for our partners, and the shared language of the Homeland Security Advisory system, we created a powerful and constant two-way flow of information between the federal government and our partners at the state and local level. This kind of coordination is crucial during an emergency.

So is having a plan, which is why the Department developed the National Response Plan to integrate all of the current federal response capabilities under a single “all hazards” system for prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.

Before September 11th, every state, every city, and even individual response teams had their own procedures for emergency incidents. They would charge in with courage, but the result was often chaos. We learned that a patchwork of individual efforts – no matter how brave – was not enough.  So the Department consulted with all stakeholders – federal government agencies, state, local, and tribal officials, as well as first responders to develop one plan.

Today, this working blueprint enhances current federal capabilities and unifies the team that will be charged with responding to potential attacks or disasters. For the first time, the National Response Plan provides a comprehensive roadmap for everyone to follow.

As part of this plan, we also introduced the National Incident Management System so that those involved in emergency response understand what their role is – and has the tools they need to be effective.

It’s the Nation’s first-ever standardized approach to incident management and response and it unifies federal, state, and local lines of government into one coordinated effort.

This integrated system makes America safer – across our entire nation and throughout every neighborhood – by establishing a uniform set of processes, protocols, and procedures that all emergency responder--at every level of government--will use to conduct response actions.

For the first time, all of the nation’s emergency teams and authorities will use a common language, and a common set of procedures when working individually – and together – to keep America safe.

I like to think of this system as the playbook for the NFL Pro-Bowl Game. When you bring together the best players from 26 different teams.  A  “Blue 42, Slant Right, Release” might mean one thing to the Quarterback, another thing to the Wide Receiver, and yet another to the linemen. At the call of “hike,” chaos might break out on the field. At the very least, the play won’t be successful.

Now, everyone shows up on game day with the same playbook. They will have the same preparation, the same goals and expectations, and – most importantly – they will be speaking the same language. When the quarterback calls a play, everyone will know what they are supposed to do. And in this battle, “safety” is far better than 2 points – in fact, it is the only result worth anything at all.

Of course, a plan is nothing without the people to execute it. And many of you will play a vital role should we ever have to put our plan into action.

As I said earlier, on September 11th many doctors, nurses, and hospital staff prepared triage areas and emergency rooms for the expected deluge of injuries trickling out of the World Trade Center. But few emerged, and we learned the lesson that in the future we need to be prepared to deploy additional medical resources at the scene of an attack or disaster.

So Homeland Security has taken over operation of the National Disaster Medical System – which consists of specially trained teams of medical professionals that are ready to activate during an incident.

These teams cover a variety of fields, including doctors and nurses capable of specializing in burns, pediatrics, crush injuries, mental health, as well as those who can properly deal with the medical consequences of chemical, biological, or nuclear materials.

This system has also readied mortuary units with the training and experience necessary to help recover, identify, and process deceased victims.

Perhaps just as important, the NDMS has incorporated these teams of medical professionals into the training exercises and planning for potential future disasters.

Now, we are able to pre-position these teams during an incident and ensure faster response times and closer cooperation between these specialized teams – and others like police and fire fighters – providing direct aid to disaster victims.

We also will make sure they have the necessary supplies, by pre-positioning life saving and life sustaining disaster equipment as close to a potential incident as possible.

This proactive deployment of resources was particularly successful as we responded to Hurricane Isabel last year, drastically reducing the time between the onset of an emergency and the delivery of life-saving equipment and personnel.

In this case, and so many others, advanced planning and preparation are instrumental to ensuring safety and security. Terrorists can – and will – strike without warning. During a crisis, there is not time to prepare, only to react.

That is why, every day, we are constantly working to improve the overall preparedness of the country. The Office of Domestic Preparedness at the Department coordinates a comprehensive effort to ensure that everyone is ready.

And, as always, preparation begins today--or three days ago in your case.

We take nothing for granted. Emergency personnel must have the right equipment, the right training, and the right amount of support to continue to do their jobs well. And average citizens must know what they are going to do in the event of an emergency.

Homeland security must be a priority in every city, every neighborhood, and every home across America. And our priority is to help make that happen.

All of us, before anything, are mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, neighbors and friends. And we each have a responsibility to be prepared.

Because if our communities are to rise to new levels of preparedness and security, each individual American must choose to make emergency planning a part of their life at home, at work, and in our children’s schools.

That, of course, is the goal of our Ready Campaign – the flagship of our citizen engagement efforts. I am sure that most of you have visited the Ready.gov website and probably helped citizens in this area compile Ready kits of their own.

If you ask people in South Florida about preparedness, they already know about buying supplies, keeping extra batteries handy, and having a hurricane evacuation route planned.

Preparedness is already part of their lives and the daily lives of many Americans. Now we must apply these principles to the threat of terrorism.

Millions of Americans have responded to the Ready Campaign and have put together emergency kits and family communications plans. We’re off to a great start with Ready, and our goal now is to have nearly half of all Americans, in some form or combination, better prepared by the end of 2004.

We will add to the strength of our existing Ready campaign by launching two new preparedness endeavors -- Ready for Business and Ready for Kids.

We will continue to work with Citizen Corps to encourage participation from families across America – whether that's by preparing family Ready kits and emergency plans; volunteering to aid in disaster planning; or engaging in CPR and training exercises to help someone in a life-threatening situation.

Since President Bush launched Citizen Corps as a component of his USA Freedom Corps initiative, thousands of people have volunteered in communities from California to North Carolina. There are 27 Citizen Corps councils in Florida including right here in Miami-Dade County.

In fact, I am pleased to report that county, local, and tribal Citizen Corps Councils now serve 50% of the United States population.

In addition, Citizen Corps coordinates the Medical Reserve Corps, which enables retired healthcare professionals to effectively augment local health officials' capacity to respond to an emergency.

The emergency response teams, medical personnel, and neighborhood watch volunteers who are part of Citizen Corps will help form the backbone of our national preparedness efforts at the local level.

In order to be fully prepared as a nation, everyone must play a role. Whether by preparing your family ready kit or volunteering to serve on your neighborhood Citizen Corps Council, the opportunities abound for individual citizens to take the reins of our homeland’s security.

But as I mentioned before, we also rely on your skills as emergency personnel and first responders. And we want you to be prepared as well.

This Department has provided unwavering support to first responders – those who arrive on the scene minutes after a tragedy and, as so many have told me, are often the last to leave.

In just the last eighteen months, we have trained more than 200,000 emergency responders in courses ranging from awareness and prevention to chemical HAZMAT techniques – and legacy agencies have reached nearly 500,000 from 5,000 different jurisdictions since 2001.

In addition, since March 1st, 2003, we have allocated or awarded more than $8 billion to help our Nation’s first responders and state and local governments to prevent, respond to, and recover from potential acts of terrorism and other disasters.

More than $360 million of that has gone to the State of Florida, including important security dollars directed for use here in Miami-Dade County.

And, I am happy to report, we are adding to that number today. It is my pleasure to announce a new $750,000 grant for Miami-Dade Fire & Rescue. This money will allow them to purchase individual backpack breathing devices and equip every single fire fighter with a custom-fitted face mask. It will help these brave men and women do their jobs better and safer.

I’d like to note that we want you doing your jobs, not filling out paper work. So we’ve streamlined the grant application process. It might not be as easy as getting money from the ATM, but we are creating a “one-stop shop” for state and local governments to apply for federal money.

Across the country, this money has already been used to purchase everything from the simplest radio to the most up-to-date technology for detecting bombs and weapons of mass destruction. It has been used to purchase and upgrade the critical equipment that first responders use to keep all of us safe – which is central to our mission of increasing America’s preparedness.

Just as important, we must ensure that this equipment works across jurisdictions--that in the event of an emergency, everyone will be able to communicate effectively.

It’s what we mean when we say “interoperable communications,” for example, a kind of technology translator that would allow police radios to talk to fire department radios. Thanks to President Bush’s leadership, we will soon have incident-level interoperable communications equipment in ten high-threat urban areas – including here in Miami.

While we continue to work on long-term solutions to overall interoperability, this RapidCom 9/30 program – so named to include our expected date of delivery, September 30th – will allow emergency personnel to communicate using existing equipment over an incident area the size of the attacks on the World Trade Center.

All of the Department’s efforts in this area will be coordinated by the new Office of Interoperability and Compatibility. It will focus not just on interoperable communications, but also on the gear that will be used by multiple jurisdictions – firefighters and police officers from different neighborhoods – as they join together to respond to a major event.

For instance, the Department has announced the first comprehensive Statement of Requirements for communications throughout the first responder community.

This document outlines the future technology requirements for public safety wireless communications and interoperability. This is going to serve as another chapter in our playbook – one that will bring governments, public safety officials, the communications industry, and future research and development efforts together under a common mission.

Because only together can we provide first responders with the tools they need to do their jobs well – in a way that replaces outdated, outmoded relics with an interoperable, innovative and integrated system of communications.

We have also adopted the first set of standards regarding personal protective equipment developed to protect first responders against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents.

These standards, which will assist state and local procurement officials and manufacturers, are intended to provide emergency personnel with the best available gear – allowing them to protect themselves, as they work to protect others.

This selfless dedication – which you each display on a daily basis, and especially by being here for this training seminar – is why I often speak of homeland security as the integration of a nation. Everyone is pledged to the cause, everyone is a protector of freedom, and everyone is a beneficiary of that freedom and security.

I’d like to personally thank you for your unyielding commitment to the security of this country, and the people you serve in the Miami area.

Together – unified in one purpose – we are working hard every day to help make America safe and secure. We will always do so – so that our families, our friends, our fellow citizens, and generations to come, will always enjoy the opportunities of freedom so plentiful in this great country.

Thank you.

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This page was last modified on 07/30/04 00:00:00