Health Two children in New York State die from influenza, is an outbreak headed to your city? Legislation increases food carrier safety precautions Emergency Services Survey: First responders say advanced technology critical for effectiveness Vermont Guard finds military role evolving Authorities stage terror training at Hoover Dam Security Port workers begin enrollment for Federal Port Security Credential Virtual personalities called a threat to U.S. Airport security technology stuck in the pipeline RAND study says U.S. lacks resources to defeat insurgencies Federal Agency Events FEMA releases on-line training course for the National Response Framework International News ‘Mysterious’ bird flu baffles Indonesian scientists Bush orders clampdown on flights to U.S.

Health

Two children in New York State die from influenza, is an outbreak headed to your city?
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330309,00.html

Two children died from influenza in upstate New York in the past two weeks, just as 11 states reported widespread flu activity across the U.S. The two tested positive for the influenza A and influenza B strains of the virus. Although this debilitating seasonal scourge usually peaks in mid-February, this year health officials are already on alert. The complications seen in recent years, such as the rise in pediatric flu deaths with bacterial infections, have been compounded by concerns of a drug-resistant strain that has cropped up in various countries. All of the drug-resistant viruses are found within the H1N1 strain, one of the three main types of influenza affecting humans this year. Of those strains, 6.7 percent have been found to be resistant to Tamiflu (oseltamivir), an antiviral medication that has been shown to shorten the duration of the flu when taken within two days of infection. Although some health experts say it is too early to tell whether this flu season will follow in the footsteps of last year’s mild outbreak, some clinicians are already seeing more cases.

Legislation increases food carrier safety precautions
http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/food_saf_bill-06Feb08.html

Legislation that makes the food supply safer by closing a loophole that exempts common carrier transportation firms from food safety precautions has passed in the New York State Assembly. Under current law, the state Department of Agriculture and Markets is limited from stopping common carriers from transporting food in conditions which may harm its quality, an assemblywoman said. For example, common carriers may transport food in the same trucks or containers used to transport chemicals such as those used in cleaning supplies. “Imagine boxes of vegetables being delivered with a leaking bottle of cleaning solution to our school cafeterias or restaurants. This legislation would increase our ability to protect against contamination by removing that risk and closing the loophole.” Violators would be subject to the same law enforcement measures and sanctions faced by any other violator of the state’s food safety laws.

< Top of page

Emergency Services

Survey: First responders say advanced technology critical for effectiveness
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/AQTH00907022008-1.htm

Motorola, Inc. and the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) today released the findings of a national survey to assess how public safety organizations use current communications technology and what future capabilities they would deploy to help improve emergency response, officer effectiveness, and public and officer safety. Key survey findings reveal a strong demand for technology solutions that provide advanced situational awareness to first responders, improve incident coordination, and streamline emergency response. A top concern of first responders nationwide is their ability to react to natural disasters (65 percent), superseding both terrorist attacks (seven percent) and crime (ten percent). Regional fire and police officials dually note that advanced communications technology ranks as the most critical aid in preparedness and response both now and in the future. While technologies are improving, community officials report that the greatest need for improvement from advanced technologies in public safety arises in terms of range, speed, and availability (26 percent), interoperability (25 percent), and availability of equipment (17 percent). Topping responders’ “wish lists” were rugged notebook computers, visual identification and recognition capabilities, and smart transportation navigation. The survey also uncovered areas for improvement within departments, as well as additional communications needs for responders and communities. Community officials in both large and small populations listed mapping technologies, or GPS tracking, as the top tool they would hope to see utilized as technology continues to evolve in the security and safety arena.

Vermont Guard finds military role evolving
http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080208/NEWS01/802080368

According to a report issued two weeks ago by a congressional commission, National Guard branches in Vermont and the rest of the nation are ill-prepared for a biological, chemical, or nuclear attack on American soil. Sapped by its increased role both at home and abroad, the report says, the Guard lacks the equipment and manpower to effectively respond. Pentagon officials rebuffed the claim. Preparations have long been underway for terrorist scenarios; and though stretched thin domestically, they said, the U.S. forces are nonetheless capable of effectively responding to homeland catastrophes. However, the head of the Vermont National Guard said Thursday that this state is better prepared than at any time in its history to defend against an attack. Still, he added, the National Guard needs more training, equipment, and other resources. As the National Guard assumes a more prominent role in the defense of the nation, he said, it must be afforded the means necessary to accomplish the mission. According to the report, the National Guard contributes about 44 percent of the country’s military personnel, but receives only nine percent of the Pentagon budget. As the military increases its reliance on Guard forces, the report said, it must close that funding gap. Vermont has seen the formation of a Civil Support Team since 9/11. The relatively new force specializes in responding to weapons of mass destruction, including biological, chemical, and nuclear attacks.

Authorities stage terror training at Hoover Dam
http://www.lasvegasnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=7841144&nav=menu102_2

Some extensive training at Hoover Dam closed down the road overnight. It is only a scenario, but explosives set off by terrorists on Hoover Dam could be real – a scenario emergency responders need to be ready for. It is why training like this is critical. “Probably the majority of our officers are not familiar with the intricacies of the different tunnels and locations of wherever everything is at. We try to get familiar with the areas – the ins and outs, the canyons, the parking structures,” said an officer from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police. Security at Hoover Dam has undergone major changes since the September 11th attacks. Vehicle checkpoints are only a few of the security measures you see at the dam. They not only protect what happens on the outside of the dam, but now what happens on the inside – an area that has not been open to the public for nearly seven years. After September 11th, the dim tunnels, or inspection galleries, were closed off to the public for security reasons. But now, after nearly seven years, a tour guide once again leads visitors down the narrow tunnels. A tour favorite, walking inside the dam, is back. Now, thanks to new security measures, instead of just being on the outside looking in, you can see what it is like from the inside looking out. “We implemented some security measures which include extra guides. We have security guys inside on the tour route. There’s never anybody in here by themselves,” said a representative with the Bureau of Reclamation. Authorities with the Bureau of Reclamation say there have never been any threats against the dam, but it is always best to be prepared just in case.

< Top of page

Security

Ashtabula Port workers begin enrollment for Federal Port Security Credential
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/080206/0358135.htm

On Wednesday, port workers, longshore workers, truckers, and others at the Port of Ashtabula began to enroll in the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program. The program’s goal is to ensure that any individual who has unescorted access to secure areas of port facilities and vessels has received a thorough background check and is not a security threat. Nationwide, more than 1 million workers with unescorted access to secure areas will apply for TWIC by the end of 2008. Ashtabula is the 63rd port to begin enrollment since the program began October 16. Ultimately, established fixed enrollment centers will be in place at 147 ports along with mobile enrollment centers at dozens of other locations as needed.

Virtual personalities called a threat to U.S.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080208/BIZ04/802080311/1013

U.S. intelligence officials are cautioning that popular Internet services that enable computer users to adopt cartoon-like personas in three-dimensional online spaces also are creating security vulnerabilities by opening novel ways for terrorists and criminals to move money and organize and conduct corporate espionage. Nascent economies have sprung to life in these 3-D worlds, complete with currency, banks, and shopping malls. Intelligence officials who have examined these systems say they are convinced that the qualities that many computer users find so attractive about virtual worlds – including anonymity, global access, and the expanded ability to make financial transfers outside normal channels – have turned them into seedbeds for transnational threats. “The virtual world is the next great frontier and in some respects is still very much a Wild West environment,” a recent paper by the government’s new Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) said. “Unfortunately, what started out as a benign environment where people would congregate to share information or explore fantasy worlds is now offering the opportunity for religious/political extremists to recruit, rehearse, transfer money, and ultimately engage in information warfare or worse with impunity.”

Airport security technology stuck in the pipeline
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23061459/

The sluggish pace of technological innovation and deployment has left holes in checkpoint security that could easily be exploited by terrorists, according to government officials and outside experts. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in coming months is expected to begin the government’s first substantial investment in new checkpoint security technology since the 1970s, according to officials at the TSA, which plans to spend about $250 million on new devices, up from about $89 million last fiscal year. The machines include upgraded X-ray equipment that will provide multiple views of bags and hand-held scanners that can detect liquid explosives in bottles after they are identified by screeners. Still, TSA officials say it will take years for much of the new technology to reach checkpoints across the nation. And they are not sure whether the upgrades will allow them to lift nettlesome restrictions on gels and liquids in carry-on luggage.

RAND study says U.S. lacks resources to defeat insurgencies
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39265&dcn=e_gvet

The federal government needs to invest an additional $20 billion to $30 billion annually to develop a "more complete and balanced set of capabilities" for the types of counterinsurgency operations the United States and allies are conducting in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a report released Monday by RAND Corp.The study, titled "War By Other Means," argues that U.S. civilian and military agencies lack the necessary equipment, organizations and investment priorities to contain, weaken and overcome insurgencies. The report also criticizes the military for failing to change plans and priorities to focus on defeating insurgencies rather than combating state enemies. "Major threats, crises, or wars usually precipitate changes in national defense capabilities -- e.g., the airplane, the tank, radar, atomic weapons," according to the report. "Not this one." Aside from funding increases for the military's special operations forces -- whose accounts have grown from 1 percent to 2 percent of the Pentagon's total budget -- there has been "no substantial change in military investment priorities" since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the report states.

< Top of page

Federal Agency Events

FEMA releases on-line training course for the National Response Framework
http://media-newswire.com/release_1060373.html

According to its press release today, “The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today released the on-line IS-800.B National Response Framework (NRF), An Introduction training course. The NRF, which focuses on response and short-term recovery, articulates the doctrine, principles, and architecture by which our nation prepares for and responds to all-hazard disasters across all levels of government and all sectors of communities.” According to the release, the course is “intended for government executives, private-sector and nongovernmental organization (NGO) leaders, and emergency management practitioners. This includes senior elected and appointed leaders, such as Federal department or agency heads, State Governors, mayors, tribal leaders, and city or county officials – those who have a responsibility to provide for effective response. Senior leaders, emergency management practitioners, disaster workers, and first responders who have previously completed IS-800 or IS-800A are not required to complete IS-800B as part of NIMS compliance activities. However, FEMA strongly urges emergency management professionals across the nation to complete this new independent study course on the NRF. Additional information on the NRF can be obtained from the NRF Resource Center at www.fema.gov/nrf.”

< Top of page

International News

‘Mysterious’ bird flu baffles Indonesian scientists
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jc32ZawRXIdCMbTiSHPrEfu8RXpQ

Scientists and officials said they were baffled by the “mysterious” behavior of the bird flu virus in Indonesia, which has already claimed nine lives in the country this year. Indonesia has reported 126 cases of H5N1 bird flu – 103 of them fatal – since 2005. This year’s victims have all come from the capital Jakarta and its satellite cities. Officials from the Ministry of Agriculture’s Bird Flu Control Unit said that the risk factors for human infection remained unclear after studies were conducted around victims’ homes. “The behavior (of the virus in Indonesia) is mysterious and we are competing with the dynamics of the virus. There needs to be deeper study on why there are more cases in humans, what are the risk factors... so we can cut the chain of infection to humans,” said an official. Meanwhile, early partial results of a study conducted by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) bird flu program in Indonesia in traditional markets in western Java – which covers Jakarta and its surrounding area – showed a high level of penetration by the virus. About half of all markets tested were positive for the virus, said the leader of the FAO program.

Bush orders clampdown on flights to U.S.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/11/usa.theairlineindustry

The U.S. administration is pressing the 27 governments of the European Union (EU) to sign up for a range of new security measures for transatlantic travel, including allowing armed guards on all flights from Europe to America by U.S. airlines. According to a U.S. document being circulated for signature in European capitals, EU states would also need to supply personal data on all air passengers overflying, but not landing in the U.S., in order to gain or retain visa-free travel to America, senior EU officials said. And within months, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is to impose a new permit system for Europeans flying to the U.S., compelling all travelers to apply online for permission to enter the country before booking or buying a ticket, a procedure that will take several days.

< Top of Page