Feral Jundi

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Industry Talk: DHS Pulls SBInet Funding

Filed under: Industry Talk,Mexico — Tags: , , , , , , , , — Matt @ 10:11 PM

     She added that funds allocated to the program would be used to for proven technologies like mobile surveillance equipment, thermal imaging devices, ultra-light plane detection systems, mobile radios, cameras and laptop computers for Border Patrol vehicles.  

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   I guess the economy dictates, and this project has been killed.  It is kind of interesting that they would list ultra-light plane detection systems as something to be funded.  I wonder if that includes the Flat Top Paramotor Border Patrol para-gliders I brought up awhile back? If it does, I didn’t know that was considered ‘proven technologies’. –Matt

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DHS Pulls SBInet Funding

By Jack Mann

17 March, 2010

DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano

The Department of Homeland Security has pulled the plug on $50 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds for the “Virtual Border Fence,” meant to secure the U.S.’s border with Mexico.  The SBInet project would mesh security cameras, motion sensors, radar and other technologies into a high-tech detection system to defeat illegal border crossings.

“Effective immediately, the Department of Homeland Security will redeploy $50 million of Recovery Act funding originally allocated for the SBInet … to other tested, commercially available security technology along the Southwest border,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano. She added that funds allocated to the program would be used to for proven technologies like mobile surveillance equipment, thermal imaging devices, ultra-light plane detection systems, mobile radios, cameras and laptop computers for Border Patrol vehicles.  She said that DHS has also frozen all funding beyond SBInet’s initial deployment to two areas south of Tucson and Ajo, Arizona, an assessment ordered in January.

Story here.

Monday, August 31, 2009

Disaster Response: The Security Officer and Incident Command

Filed under: Disaster Response,Industry Talk,Leadership — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 12:05 AM

    I read this story below, and it reminded me of how little respect folks have for the security officer of a facility, all the way up until something awful happens.  Something like a terrorist attack or natural disasters or a response to a influenza virus outbreak like Novel Influenza A (Swine Flu). It usually takes a really bad deal to remind everyone how important an initial response and attack is, in order to combat these type of things.

   But what this story missed, and was ‘oh so close’ to mentioning, was the importance of Incident Command to the initial response to an incident like a pandemic.  Incident Command is the answer, and it is also something that has been federally mandated by DHS.  But what does that really mean, you might ask?

   It means that the US government has recognized the power and efficiency of such a system, based on it’s usage during the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the hurricane responses the last couple of years and the fires that ravage the west every summer.  It is a simple command language and structure, that all units involved can rally around and understand.  That is a powerful thing, because the emergency response that is most organized and most flexible to answer the rapid pace of an evolving incident, will win.  It has been proven time and time again, hence why it is the preferred command structure for emergency response in the US.

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Monday, March 9, 2009

Training: Is Your Company ‘National Incident Management System’ Ready?

Filed under: Kaizen,Training — Tags: , , , — Matt @ 3:05 PM

   Ok gang, this is an important one, and I am hoping that any company reps that might read this, actually pay attention.  Here at Feral Jundi, I have been talking my head off about the importance of the Incident Command System, and why we should be getting ICS smart.  Well this little deal below is one reason, in my list of reasons for going this route.  If a company is used in a disaster zone or some national security deal, and they are not up to speed on NIMS, then they will certainly be behind the power curve.  And seeing how all the federal, state, and local groups have been given the orders of ‘one mission, one team, one fight’ since 2004, we need to catch up in the private industry if we want to integrate well into that effort.

   In the Fire Services, all federal/state/local/private industry groups were required to be up to speed on Incident Command.  It is actually part of the fire refresher training each year.  But notice how I tacked on ‘private industry’, because fire contractors all had to be able to integrate well on an incident.  They had to have radios, the fire equipment, a red card stating that they were qualified, and they needed to know who and what an Incident Commander was on a fire.  ICS was a necessary bit of knowledge, if a contractor wanted to play with others on fires. 

    Even if your company does not take the time to learn this stuff or train it’s employees, you as the security specialist could definitely take it upon yourself to learn.  If you have questions about Incident Command and how it works, just do a Google or Feral Jundi Search. Or you could just ask me and I will be more than happy to fill in the blanks.  I also think the attacks in Mumbai, are certainly an indicator that we must get organized when it comes to managing chaotic environments.  During that attack, there was no Incident Management and really no leadership bringing everyone under such a system.  The result was chaos and casualties, with extreme blame on the government for not doing enough to deal with such a thing.  Things to think about…-Matt 

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Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge Approves National Incident Management System (NIMS)

For Immediate Release

Press Office

Contact: 202-282-8010

March 1, 2004

U. S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge today announced approval of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) (PDF, 152 pages – 7.6MB) the Nation’s first standardized management plan that creates a unified structure for Federal, state, and local lines of government for incident response.  “NIMS gives all of our Nation’s responders the same framework for incident management and fully puts into practice the concept of, ‘One mission, one team, one fight,'” Ridge said.

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Mexico: Texas Governor Screams For 1,000 Troops

Filed under: Mexico,Texas — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 2:22 PM

“Texas pleads for U.S. troops

Now, to hear Texas Gov. Rick Perry tell it, U.S. resources are being focused too much on Mexico and not enough on Americans on this side of the border.

Last month, Perry called on the Department of Homeland Security to send 1,000 troops to the U.S. side of the border. Complaining that the federal government had not done enough to protect Americans in the border region, Perry dismissed potential constitutional concerns about assigning active-duty U.S. personnel to military operations inside the United States, saying bluntly, ‘I really don’t care.’” 

And…

“I don’t care if they are military, National Guard or Customs agents,” Mr Perry said at a news conference at the border town of El Paso yesterday. “We’re very concerned that the federal Government is not funding border security adequately. We must be ready for any contingency.” 

    Thanks to Jeff for sending me this story.  I’m sorry, but when I hear the governor of a state screaming for troops, and we don’t answer the call, I have to say WTF? I mean the governor has the National Guard to draw from, but it sounds like Texas wants something more, in terms of money and commitment.   

    There is plenty of fire power to draw upon in the US, it’s just establishing the mechanism to get it done.  Law enforcement could deputize citizens and form a posse of volunteers.  The National Guard could send folks from some other state, if Texas can’t do it with their own NG.  The Border Patrol could up the recruitment tempo and infuse more folks into the program out there, and even draw upon ICE to throw more folks down there.  

    Or, the final solution is to contract it out.  Matter of fact, all of those groups I listed, could contract PSC’s to make this happen.  We did it during the Hurricane Katrina disasters, and private security companies like Blackwater, Steele Foundation, SOC or Armorgroup were able to respond very quickly and effectively. And to really emphasize this point of contractors on the border, we already use them for border duties in Iraq and Afghanistan. But I guess they are not good enough for the US border?  And during the Katrina disaster, PSC’s were deputized by the state of Louisiana.  It was an emergency, and establishing security in that disaster zone was the priority, no matter how they got it done.  I see no difference with the call for help in Texas, and in other border states.  

   Of course the Border Patrol and Local Law Enforcement should be the primary guardians of the border and those border cities and towns. But if they are overwhelmed and out gunned, and they lack the manpower or there is some legal stop sign about using US troops, then contract out the security.   

   Either way, I go back to leadership for this one.  There are plenty of ways to answer this call for security on the border, but it takes leadership and a plan to make it happen.  Texas and the border states are screaming for help, and we need to take care of our people. –Matt 

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 In Mexico’s drug wars, fears of a U.S. front

Violence that has killed thousands is beginning to cross border, officials say

By Alex Johnson

March. 9, 2009

With U.S. forces fighting two wars abroad, the nation’s top military officer made an important visit last week to forestall a third.

He went to Mexico.

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, made the trip to confer with Mexican leaders about the Merida Initiative, a three-year plan signed into law last June to flood the U.S.-Mexican border region with $1.4 billion in U.S. assistance for law-enforcement training and equipment, as well as technical advice and training to bolster Mexico’s judicial system.

The assistance is intended to help Mexican President Felipe Calderón Hinojosa step up his war against drug cartels. The drug lords and their soldiers are blamed for having killed more than 6,300 people since January 2008, including more than 1,000 in the first two months of this year alone.

That’s about 100 people every week for the last 14 months. The cartels usually do not target civilians, but dozens, perhaps hundreds, have died in the crossfire.

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Monday, November 17, 2008

Industry Talk: The Future of Security Contracting on the Border?

Filed under: Industry Talk — Tags: , , , — Matt @ 1:29 PM

   Interesting little interview with a former Security Chief with DHS about Dyncorp at the border, and the future of contractor use by DHS.  –Head Jundi 

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The Future of Security Contracting on the Border?

November 17, 2008

As the former chief security officer for the Department of Homeland Security, Dwight Williams directed and managed security matters related to the department and its 200,000 employees and contractors for close to three years. Williams, a 30-year security veteran whose resume also includes over a decade with the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, now serves as a vice president overseeing security at DynCorp International, a private defense contractor, which he joined in June 2007. CSO caught up with Williams for his thoughts on the future of homeland security and its increasing partnership with private contract firms.

CSO: Dyncorp has had a presence with contract security forces on the border, as well as with contingency efforts in the Gulf after Hurricane Katrina. Drawing upon your expertise both with DynCorp, and previously with the Department of Homeland Security, do you anticipate an increasing private presence in homeland security efforts?

Williams: From its formation, DHS relied heavily on contractor support to stand up the organization and roll out new initiatives. From my experience, it was a public-private partnership that worked very well. I am certain the private sector will continue to play a prominent role with DHS, particularly in the development of new technologies to protect the homeland and by providing surge support in response to natural or man-made disasters.

Other key roles for the private sector include the protection of our critical infrastructure and government facilities, thus freeing valuable government resources to concentrate on detection and elimination of threats to our way of life.

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