Preparedness is job one

Deepa Bharath

The country is a lot better prepared to face terrorist attacks than

it was before Sept. 11, 2001, officials assured local residents at a

town hall meeting Tuesday night.

The Security Summit at Vanguard University, organized by

Assemblyman Ken Maddox and co-hosted by Costa Mesa councilmen Allan

Mansoor and Mike Schaefer, featured a panel of officials representing

local, county and federal agencies.

Representatives from agencies such as the Orange County Sheriff’s

Department, Fire Authority, California Highway Patrol and the Federal

Bureau of Investigation talked about what they have done to improve

homeland security since the terrorist attacks on the World Trade

Center and Pentagon.

CHP Chief Skip Carter said his department has expanded its

infrastructure from patrolling bridges and acquiring air support to

adding more bomb sniffing dogs to its arsenal.

“9/11 has changed our lives forever,” he said.

And one of the things it has done is bring different agencies

together, binding them into a strong working relationship, Carter

said.

Costa Mesa Fire Chief Jim Ellis agreed.

“I’ve never seen this type of camaraderie between fire and law

enforcement in my 27 years in fire service,” he said. “Firefighters

are working shoulder to shoulder with police officers.”

Costa Mesa has made several strides since Sept. 11 in terms of

preparedness, Ellis said.

“We have a search and rescue vehicle, something we’ve never had

before,” he said.

Ellis also helped put together a Citizens Corps. last spring

pulling together a group of community members who will keep their

respective neighborhoods and communities informed about disaster

preparedness.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department has been spearheading the

county’s war against terrorism, said Capt. Catherine Zurn.

Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona put together the Orange County

Joint Terrorism Task Force consisting of countywide representatives,

a Terrorism Early Warning team to relay information to the state and

a Homeland Security Advisory Council consisting of industry leaders,

she said.

FBI spokesman Matthew McLaughlin said his agency launched “the

biggest investigation in history” after Sept. 11.

“Our mission changed from investigating terrorist attacks to

preventing them, and those are two entirely different missions,” he

said.

McLaughlin assured the audience that several terrorist attacks had

been thwarted since Sept. 11.

These are things the public does not hear about, but they are very

much a reality, he said.

Progress is also being made in terms of emergency equipment, said

Orange County Fire Authority Battalion Chief Kirk Summers.

“We’ll soon have chemical protective suits and respiratory

protection for all our firefighters and police officers,” he said.

“We also have radiological detectors to detect what are known as the

dirty bombs.”

The Fire Authority also has four hazardous material teams and

training programs for firefighters and law enforcement officers,

Summers said.

“We’re looking at the rear-view mirror and seeing if anyone’s

catching up,” he said. “But right now we don’t see anyone. That

doesn’t mean they’re not there or they won’t get there.

“A lot of work has been done, but a lot more needs to be done.”

Those who came to the meeting said they came out of concern and

out of an interest to learn more about the issues surrounding

homeland security.

“This is something I feel strongly about,” said Margo E. Bennett

of Newport Beach. “I want to be more aware about what I should watch

out for. For example, who should I be calling if I’m a retail clerk

and I see someone buying a lot of fertilizer?”

Evelyn Miller, a member of Huntington Beach-based California

Coalition for Immigration Reform, said she is concerned about the

nation’s borders, which are wide open.

“As long as our borders are open, there’s no homeland security,”

she said.

More should be done by local law enforcement, said Phil McVey, a

Fountain Valley resident.

“I’d like to see them train more and be better prepared,” he said.

“More resources need to be dedicated to local law enforcement.”