Infogram

November 18, 2004

NOTE: This INFOGRAM will be distributed weekly to provide members of the emergency management and response sector with information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures. It has been prepared by NATEK Incorporated for the Emergency Preparedness and Response Directorate. For further information, contact the Emergency Management and Response - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) at (301) 447-1325 or by e-mail at emr-isac@dhs.gov.

Domestic Terrorism: A Continuing Concern

Since 9/11, the nation's attention has been focused on threats from transnational terrorists. But within the United States, home-grown terrorists have been steadily planning and executing ambitious attacks in unrelated incidents across the nation according to law enforcement authorities. Federal officials and two organizations monitoring hate groups reported that domestic terrorists range from white supremacists, eco-terrorists, illegal militias, anti-government miscreants, and anti-corporate malcontents. They also include violent anti-abortionists, criminal biker gangs, and ethnic nationalists who envision a separate state for particular minorities.

Recently the FBI announced that acts of vicious sabotage motivated by concern for animals or the environment (i.e., eco-terrorism) was the country's top domestic terrorism threat. Officials from the Southern Poverty Law Center (Montgomery, AL) confirmed that domestic terrorism has "hummed along at quite a steady clip and poses an increasingly serious threat throughout America." Some current examples follow:

Last month, the FBI arrested a man who agents say hated the federal government and was acquiring chemicals and explosives to "blow up" government buildings.
Last month, two men described by the U.S. attorney as domestic terrorists pleaded guilty to dozens of acts of extensive vandalism and arson around the country since 1996.
In May, a Texas man was sentenced to prison for stockpiling enough sodium cyanide to kill everyone inside a 30,000 square-foot building.
In May, seven members of an animal rights group were charged with terrorism for committing numerous crimes in multiple states to stop the use of animals for product-testing.

The director of an intelligence unit which tracks hate groups said that "despite the real external threat, communities and their emergency services must plan and prepare for this bitter domestic reality." Therefore, the EMR-ISAC will continue to share information about the "internal threat" in order to promote the critical infrastructure protection of emergency managers and responders nationwide.

Protecting Critical Information

Natural disasters have occasionally ruined or destroyed the critical information (e.g., plans, legal documents, and credentials) of communities and their emergency organizations. When these nature events occur and damage vital records, the incident has the potential to partially degrade infrastructure protection because of the close complementary relationship between the two distinct disciplines. For example, the failure to protect critical information can jeopardize the protection of critical infrastructures because critical information if frequently about critical infrastructures.

In this computer age, there is a relatively easy and inexpensive way to protect important documents and information. It can be done using a recordable compact disk (CD-R). Fortunately, most computers have CD-ROM players that are CD-R capable. Therefore, once information is in a digital format, the user simply follows the computer system's directions for burning and copying compact disks (CDs). Saving files to a CD and storing the CD off-site will ensure that the critical information contained on the CD is permanently preserved for future use. The EMR-ISAC encourages all emergency agencies to frequently back-up their critical information for continuity of operations as well as "response-ability" under all circumstances.

Preparing the Emergency Medical Service

There is a new online course available designed to assist Emergency Medical Service (EMS) personnel to respond more effectively when faced with a Multiple Casualty Incident (MCI). This independent study course, "EMS Operations at Multi-Casualty Incidents" is a 4-hour, web-based course that addresses preparedness planning; management of the incident; safe and efficient triage, treatment, transportation of patients; and the de-escalation of the response. It is not intended to provide detailed steps in the care of patients.

An MCI can occur as a result of many situations, including a transportation crash, the collapse of a building or bleachers, a civil disturbance, a severe weather event, a hazardous material release, a terrorist attack, etc. The course includes information on safely and effectively dealing with an MCI resulting from an attack involving chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive (CBRNE) agents. The course can be found on the U.S. Fire Administration's Virtual Campus at: http://www.training.fema.gov.

Medical Surge Capacity and Capability Handbook

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently reported that medical and health systems in the nation face the increasing probability of major emergencies or disasters involving human casualties. According to this report, "such events will severely challenge the ability to adequately care for large numbers of patients (surge capacity) with those patients having unusual or highly specialized medical needs (surge capability)."

HHS officials stated that "the first step to address medical surge is using management systems for medical and health response to major emergencies and disasters, along with developing and maintaining preparedness programs." They recommend the Medical Surge Capacity and Capability Handbook, which is based on valid principles of emergency management and the Incident Management System. Medical, health, and emergency management systems may use the handbook's management principles to coordinate incident management and emergency management systems (e.g., EMS, fire, and law enforcement).

The handbook helps promote a common management system for all response operations-public and private-that may be involved in major emergencies. Additionally, it will guide a health and medical response development consistent with the new National Incident Management System. The handbook can be viewed at: http://www.hhs.gov/asphep/mscc_sept2004.pdf.

FAIR USE NOTICE

This INFOGRAM may contain copyrighted material that was not specifically authorized by the copyright owner. EMR-ISAC personnel believe this constitutes "fair use" of copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use copyrighted material contained within this document for your own purposes that go beyond "fair use," you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Reporting Notice

DHS and the FBI encourage recipients of this document to report information concerning suspicious or criminal activity to DHS and/or the FBI. The DHS National Operation Center (NOC) can be reached by telephone at 202-282-9685 or by e-mail at NOC.Fusion@dhs.gov.

The FBI regional phone numbers can be found online at www.fbi.gov/contact/fo/fo.htm

For information affecting the private sector and critical infrastructure, contact the National Infrastructure Coordinating Center (NICC), a sub-element of the NOC. The NICC can be reached by telephone at 202-282-9201 or by e-mail at NICC@dhs.gov.

When available, each report submitted should include the date, time, location, type of activity, number of people and type of equipment used for the activity, the name of the submitting company or organization, and a designated point of contact.

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