THIS TALK CAN BE FOUND AT http://mvinet.com/terrorism.htm
Terrorism
Hello,my name is Chuck Cotnoir. I'm The Dukes County Emergency Management Agency Deputy Director of the Emergency Operations Center. Currently, we deal mainly with hurricanes. Over the last 6 months or so, I have volunteered to gather information on terrorism. That makes me the Terrorism Information Gatherer, but plans, procedures and policies come from higher up the Chain of Command. I volunteered for this because of my background as a military Chemical, Biological, and Nuclear Warfare Specialist for the AirForce. In addition, I have also worked with both FEMA and MEMA. In regards to Terrorism, the Dukes County Emergency Management Agency, at the present time, is an Information Only Provider. More about that later. I have attended numerous state conferences on the various aspects of Terrorism to find out what the Federal and the State agencies have to say about their readiness and capabilities.and I have read widely on the subject.
You, as individuals, probably came here today to learn about the kinds of terrorism that we face, Chemical, Biological, Nuclear. There is very little that we here on the island can do to thwart an act of terrorism over on the mainland and it is unlikely that a terrorist act would be perpetrated here on the island. Further, we are insulated somewhat from the effects of a chemical, biologic, or nuclear attack on the mainland because we are an island and can shut off our entry points, if necessary. However, what I can tell you is that regardless of whether it's Chemical, Biologic, or Nuclear, if it is large enough, it can break down portions of the US infrastructure. Transportation, Energy Production, Communications, the Financial System, and the like. So, it is not the specific terrorist act that we ,as individuals, here on the island, have to prepare for but it is the aftermath, the possible breakdown of portions of our infrastructure, that we can prepare for. Hey, Remember they laughed at Noah and if it doesn't happen, well, we'll all sit back later and laugh.
Terrorism is unlike any of the normal emergencies that we are used to handling. When we go through a hurricane or a winter storm, we are dealing with emergencies that we have dealt with before and we know a lot about what is going to happen. We have some advanced warning, we know that the emergency is going to be of a limited but known time and we know that the aftermath, the clean-up is going to involve major help from the state and the feds. We know this because the damage area is usually small and that there are a lot of state and federal assets that can be put into a relatively small geographical area. And we know that relatively few of us will be impacted.
Now I'm going to ask a question. How many of you here were alive when President Roosevelt said " The only thing we have to fear is fear itself"? Go ahead and raise your hands.
I asked this question because the objective of the kind of terrorism that we currently face is fear because fear can bring down any country, and that is what the terrorists want to do. However, Knowledge, Planning, and Preparation can overcome fear and that is what I will try to help you begin, today.
Now, another question, How many here believe that we will see another terrorist attack?
How many believe that it could ... not will ... but could be of such magnitude that it could affect your own personal way of life?
OK. The really smart thinkers in Washington are planning for a worst case scenario, a full or partial infrastructure disruption. They don't know it will happen but they have to plan that way. On a personal level, I've decided to plan in the same way. After all, just like Y2K, if nothing happens, all I've lost is some time and effort. I still have all of the resources that I gathered. BUT, if the worst happens, well we all know the story about the ant and the grasshopper.
Now I told you that normal emergencies are relatively easy to handle because we know a lot about them. Terrorism, on the other hand has an awfully lot of unknowns.
These are just some of the unknowns, .. to us personally, the state government, and the Federal Government. We won't have any advanced warning, the emergency could cover a relatively large geographical area, it will be designed to disrupt as much of the infrastructure of the country as possible, and it will be designed to disrupt and overtax as much of the governmental and private sector services as possible.
Now, more questions.
Question 1: How many of you here believe that the government will be able to take care of you in the aftermath of a terrorist attack that affects the whole of the eastern part of the US?
Question 2: How many of you here believe that with the proper information, you will be able to take care of yourselves and your community, for a reasonable length of time?
Question 3: How many of you here would actually make those preparations, even if you didn't know if a major terrorist event would ever occur?
I asked these questions because I wanted you to think about what you can do to help yourselves and also the island community. In going to these conferences, I have repeatedly listened to both the Federal and State agencies say that it is up to communities to be their own first line of defense. Probably, defense is not the right word to use, but what they're saying is that we have to provide for ourselves for the first 12 to 24 hours. Now we'll have a little joke at the government's expense. Think about this for a minute. On a Federal level, there are almost 300 million people living in the US. How long do you think it would take for the US government to give 1 bowl of soup to 300 million people? Also, a great percentage of those 300 million people work for the Federal or State Government. Who do you think is going to get their soup first? On a state level, if they're trying to take care of the whole rest of the Commonwealth, We, out here on the island, are probably going to have to go it alone for considerably longer. In fact, in the event of a major meltdown, it could be a very long time before we get any help.
Now, How many of you have internet access at home?
Please hold up your hands.
And the rest of you, that don't have access at home, look around the room, and pick out someone to ask about sharing their access.
OK, Now I'm going to suggest some personal methods for you to combat the effects of terrorism and the fear that this situation brings to us.
And I'll give a list on Internet links to the Council on Aging to Post on the bulletin board. These links will give you some lists and checklists to help you in your efforts.
This next section is called:
PREPARATION, COMMUNITY CIRCLES, and LOBBYING
#1) START WITH VERY BASIC PREPARATIONS FOR YOUR IMMEDIATE FAMILY
Again, Since it is unlikely that the island itself will be attacked by terrorism, and that it is more likely that if you were to be affected directly, it would be from the breakdown of the country's infrastructure (transportation,electricity, banking, etc.) you would want to take some very basic preparations before it happens. And incidentally, one of the very best ways for you to reduce the fear of terrorism is to be able to go down into your own cellar and look at your emergency supplies. PRE[ARE BEFOREHAND.
This is what you do. Begin your preparations with the normal preparations that you would make for a hurricane.
#1)water, food & medicine,
#2)shelter & clothing,
#3) and heat & light.
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency has a webpage entitled MEMA OFFERS SAFETY TIPS DURING THIS TIME OF UNCERTAINTY. Read http://www.mvinet.com/memadoc.htm
This is a good place to start.
The next thing you want to do is go to the links for DISASTER PREPARATION CHECKLISTS, I've listed 2. One from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, one from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
http://www.state.ma.us/mema/prepare/dizkit.htm MEMA
http://www.fema.gov/pte/emprep.htm FEMA
Look at these lists and copy those items that apply to you. Write them on a separate piece of paper. List the items vertically down the page and write it in ink. On the other side of the page, write in pencil, the amount of each item that you have on hand, and the number of days that the supplies will last. Start with a 1 week supply, buying as you can afford it. Once you have all the items that you have selected, begin on your second week of supplies, then the third, and so on. Remember to update your list every time you add to your supplies. Gather your supplies over time, a little at a time. Remember, you don't want to wait until an emergency happens to do your shopping. We all know what the grocery store and the hardware store looks like, just before a hurricane. My best advice. START PREPARATION NOW, START PREPARATION NOW, START PREPARATION NOW.
RESOURCES
http://www.intellex.com/~baprod/ These products are not endorsed by the Dukes County Emergency Management Agency but may be useful to you.
Lastly, I've included a link on the psychological effects of terrorism from the Department of Justice, called Coping After Terrorism. A Guide to healing and recovery.OVC Handbook for Coping After Terrorism
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/publications/infores/cat_hndbk/welcome.html
Homeland Security
I have put together a list of links to assist you in addressing the concerns that we are facing in our communities. I hope that you find them helpful in answering questions that you might have.
http://www.lowndesfire.org/lepc/wmd.htm
http://www.walthamlepc.org/cterr/
http://www.ncgov.com/asp/subpages/safety_security.asp
USE THIS LINK TO CHECK ON THE STATUS OF THE TERRORISM ALERT CODE
http://www.whitehouse.gov/homeland/
Office of Homeland Security and color code
OK, So far we have:
#1) START WITH VERY BASIC PREPARATIONS FOR YOUR IMMEDIATE FAMILY
and we add to that:
#2) FORM NEIGHBORHOOD CIRCLES
Now another question. Who here remembers World War 2? Everybody else look around. These are the most important people in the group. These are the people who will be able to tell you what they had to do to live through that very long period of disruption. Even after the war, it took a very long time to get back to normal. So, these people can contribute a lot of information to your community efforts. During those times, neighborhoods , of necessity, helped each other more than they do now. Joe needed a hammer, Harry had a hammer, Joe's wife Esther had a sewing machine, Harry's wife Marie needed to sew a dress for her daughter. They all talked about the war and formed communities to get through the hard times.
Form your neighborhood circles of at least 7 to 10 other seniors in your neighborhood for each circle, with 1 spokesman. Try to get together at least once or twice a month for discussions and ideas on how preparations are going and what's still needed. Each month, the spokesmen from each group should get together with other neighborhood spokesmen to share ideas.
There are two very important advantages that you have now that you didn't have back in WW2. You have the Senior Centers which give you a physical location to meet and you have the Internet which gives you a place where you can share your ideas. Put up a single website for seniors, and give every neighborhood group a webpage to post their names and the group's ideas. That way, it gives all the groups instant information about what is going on in all the other groups. It makes sharing ideas and information much, much faster.
So, so far we have
#1) START WITH VERY BASIC PREPARATIONS FOR YOUR IMMEDIATE FAMILY
#2) FORM NEIGHBORHOOD CIRCLES
and
#3) IF YOU WANT THE ISLAND TO BE READY TO COMBAT THE POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF INFRASTRUCTURE DISRUPTION RESULTING FROM ACTS OF TERRORISM, YOU MUST LOBBY YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS TO BRING THE ISLAND'S EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCIES TO A MUCH HIGHER PRIORITY WHEN IT COMES TO FUNDING, PLANNING, PREPARATION, ADDITIONAL STAFFING AND TRAINING.
To Sum up:
1) It is unlikely that an act of terrorism will be perpetrated on the Island
2) If an act of terrorism does affect the Island, it will probably be a disruption of the infrastructure.
3) If you believe that an infrastructure disruption can occur, you must BEGIN TO PREPARE NOW
4) Start with the basic preparations for your immediate family. Use the links we give you to make your initial preparation lists. Buy your emergency supplies, every week, a little at a time.
5) Every time you feel fearful, go down into your cellar and look at your supplies.
6) Form your neighborhood circles and meet regularly
7)Lobby your elected officials, to bring the island's emergency management agencies to a much higher priority so that adequate funding, planning, preparation additional staffing and training can be accomplished. Then go look at the plans and ask them when they plan to hold training exercises for the plans. Offer to participate. Keep asking until you're satisfied.
8) What you can do to help from citizencors.gov