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.
But back to security officers at facilities. It is my belief that we should mandate that security companies and their employees be trained in Incident Command, receive ratings under the Incident Command system, and be entered into the database of the Incident Command Qualifications System that the federal government uses to call up forces for an incident.
Companies should also have to purchase radios that are programable and coordinated with local and national response forces. As a forest fire fighter, all units used the Bendix King programable radios. They worked, but there are definitely better offerings in the works. Especially with Blackberry push to talk systems, or even satellite systems. Integrated communications and a universal command system are two required elements to do business out there. I could go into other essentials, but if we can’t talk with each other and we have no clue who is in charge or what they do in that position, then folks will be running around lost and ineffectual. Worse yet, your overall strategy, whatever that might be, will not have the best chance for success because you are not organized.
Once entered into this system, a company could be listed as an on call resource, ready to be contracted by the federal government for incident response. Individuals could offer their services in this system as well.
And get this, right now, that is how it works for forest fire fighting. That’s right, the system is already set up for contractors to respond to fires, all based on that contractor’s locality, qualifications and certifications, and ability to respond. It is also based on need, and if the federal government does not have the in house resources to take care of the needs of an incident, they switch to contractors. In most cases for fires, it is a combination of both local and national actors, and they could either be federal, state, or contractor individuals. The only way that any of these individuals can play, is holding a Red Card qualification and inputed into the national database.
The other part that is so awesome about this system, is the incredible way dispatch centers and regional coordination centers use it. Fire camps that rival small cities can often times be set up within days of a forest fire happening. And when the Incident Commander orders something up based on their needs for that fire, the dispatch centers and coordination centers snap to, in order to get those commanders what they need.
As the incident gets bigger, then more qualified IC’s are brought in to be in charge. As the incident gets smaller, then the command system reduces in scope and size. The system breaths and flexes, and it really is neat to watch. On one incident, it might start as a Type 5 type fire, that requires a Type 5 IC, and then within a day, it could go all the way up to a Type 3 sized fire that would require a Type 3 IC. The next day it could jump to a Type 1, or the efforts of the fight could result in bringing it back down to a Type 4. Each command is preparing the incident for each level of command, either going up or down. A Type 3 IC is managing the fire, and prepping for a Type 2 IC to take over, if that Type 3 IC is predicting the fire to blow up. There is so much that happens under the charge of an IC, and the whole thing is amazing to watch.
The whole system is a streamlined supply and demand, fire breathing machine, that has been responsible for saving thousands of acres of forests, hundreds of lives, and thousands of homes over the course of forest fire fighting history in the US. Not to mention the response to hurricane and tornado disasters, floods, Space Shuttle crashes, beetle infestation eradication, 9/11 terrorist attacks response, and even dealing with viruses that infected chickens in Nevada. This system works, and it is the fastest initial attack response system out there. I should know, because not only was I forest fire fighter under that system, but I was also a dispatcher, worked at the regional coordination centers, and even was on loan to FEMA for disaster response in Florida during the 2004 hurricane season.
Now back to the article below, and how I could see this work. If companies wanted to contract with the federal government in order to be a part of this initial response system, then the feds need to outline the kind of officers and security services they could potentially see a use for. They could also provide the frame work for security professionals to become certified Incident Commanders. In the fire service, we started out as IC Type 5’s, then worked up from there to 4, 3, 2, and 1 for ratings. I ended up being a Type 3 trainee before I left the fire services, and even got to command a few Type 3 forest fires.
That experience, along with my security and military background, has given me a unique ‘building snowmobiles’ moment in regards to how security contractors should be used in order to make this country more prepared for future incidents. The best part is the system is already in place, and there are even Security Officer ratings in the Red Card system. Hell, Incident Commanders can even request contract Security Officers to protect aviation bases or fire camps, if they see a need for such a thing. So technically speaking, there is already a way to contract your security services to the federal government for disasters. But it is little known, and not developed to the level needed in order to properly respond to bigger security centric events. That would take leadership in the Dept. of Homeland Security, as well as with NICC and NIFC , to better integrate security elements into the system. I also concede that military and police would be the primary actors for security related events, but in the mad minutes of an event that requires instant security response, it is kind of hard to call 911 and request that the Army dispatch in an hour or so.
On that note, the National Guard and military is used for forest fires as well, and organized into the Incident Command structure. Although the training and emphasis on getting military units to embrace the concepts of Incident Command is not there. They have a lot on their plate these days, and disaster response kind of gets trumped by the war effort. I guess that would be another reason to really focus on the local and national response that is non-military.
All in all, it takes leadership to drive this forward, and a commitment to corral all these essential organizations under one tent, yet still allow those organizations to perform their regular missions and jobs. I know it can happen, and I have seen it happen first hand. I have been on the fires where police, fire, security, military, media, and aviation, all operated under one system of management.
We could take this one step further, and this would be directed towards those that are currently trying to regulate the security contracting industry. If the US federal government started using the Montreux Document as a code of conduct for the Security Officer qualification in the IQCS system, then you can totally see a framework starting to develop for true regulation. The US is already using security contractors for disasters and wars, why not use the US emergency response system that is based on Incident Command, to coral those security contractors?
Better yet, throw in some qualifications like Convoy Security Specialist, Convoy Security Leader, Site Security Specialist, Site Security Specialist Leader, etc. etc. You get the idea, and my vision for it is that all security contractors would have a Red Card, the same that forest fire fighters are issued, and they would be certified as Security Specialists at the bare minimum. Once certified as such, they could also pursue the training necessary to be Incident Command Type 5 through even Type 1 leaders.
Or a separate international system could be modeled after this Incident Command system that the US uses, and then this system is what we could use to apply and enforce standards. But definitely base this system on the language of Incident Command, so that it’s members could be tapped for disaster responses based on the various country’s needs. I should note that Incident Command is used internationally as well, and the US has done fire fighter exchanges with countries like Australia and Canada, and all participants operate under the Incident Command structure.
With this story, we have seen a need for organization and command at the most basic and local level. That command should be able to expand and flex based on the incident, and that command should have access to a larger system that can expand and flex on call to that IC’s needs. That is the pay off of such a system, and that is the kind of system a security officer of a facility, who is trying to save lives and property at the local level should be using.
Also, I advocate the security officer to be a part of other local systems of response, but really, if that security officer wants to really help, they should be trying to get local response systems on the same sheet of music as the federal response. The federal response will also be able to work much better with the local response if they are all on the same sheet of music with Incident Command.
The security officer should be planning the response and defense, and put the pieces in the places they need to be in, way before any incident happens. Best of all, if he can get all of those pieces into a simple framework of operation, and make them interchangeable within the bigger picture of Incident Command and the response to national incidents, then we can say that we are truly prepared. –Matt
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Monday, August 31, 2009
Asa Hutchinson and Michael G. Schmidt
Louis Pasteur, the father of microbiology, said in a lecture at the University of Lille in 1854, “Dans les champs de l’observation le hasard ne favorise que les esprits prepares,” “Chance favors only the prepared mind.”
Emergence of an influenza virus, Novel Influenza A (H1N1, swine origin), that has the potential of becoming the first pandemic variant of this virus in the 21st century certainly requires prepared minds in governments, health care systems and the private sector if we are to mitigate the effects that this virus will have on the health and well-being of our societies.
Additionally, in the event of a large-scale or national crisis, there simply are not enough money, resources or personnel for government to protect America’s businesses and employees everywhere all of the time. So what can we do?
Consider what happened in April and May. We saw for the first time the true meaning of globalization with respect to how quickly an airborne contagion could spread across the planet in ways not even Pasteur’s prepared mind could have imagined. How did we fare, and were we prepared? These are questions we must answer.
Most would say we fared well, that while the virus was highly contagious, it was limited in its ability to cause serious mortality. We witnessed the surge on the limited resources available to both our private and public health care systems very early on in the epidemic. And, as the virus spread across 46 countries, infecting many more than 12,000 people, we learned the value of disseminating accurate and timely information to limit the consumption of those valued resources.
Much of the credit for the response thus far goes to the preparation and effective, coordinated implementation of pandemic flu plans by international, national and local public health departments.
However, while this particular variant of the common flu virus provided us a dress rehearsal of how best to respond to this type of crisis, it also highlighted the need for continued vigilance with our planning efforts and underscored the need for crisis response officers within local private-sector facilities.
Right now, while many companies have security officers responsible primarily for the companies’ facilities and employees, only a small percentage of companies are well-positioned with designated officers serving the companies’ facilities in relationship to the broader community to contribute to community resiliency in the first 72 hours of a large-scale or national crisis.
Officers need to be in every large and small business in America for our nation to be sufficiently prepared for the next virus, natural disaster or terrorist attack and to optimize our potential for resiliency.
Consider the role of the officer in the context of this most recent crisis. First, as in politics, it is important to remember that all crises are local. Accordingly, it was observed that the officer for many private-sector concerns that arose during the outbreak served as the natural or key point of contact between the corporation and the local public health department because they already had collaborated to develop an integrated plan for the community to control the outbreak and shepherd limited resources.
Second, the officers took ownership for the crisis within the management structure of the corporation for developing plans and then coordinating their implementation while recognizing that the paramount goal was to help their employees and their families prepare, respond and, most important, recover from crisis.
Third, and ideally, officers also would be credentialed and integrated into the local Citizen Corps Councils to facilitate training, communication and preparedness/response protocols.
The crisis officer concept is not new to government and military operational commands. However, recent disasters and this most recent public health crisis illustrate the need for this important position to be staffed and developed within the private sector to support response and recovery efforts.
We were fortunate that this new variant of Influenza A, H1N1, was limited in its ability to cause serious mortality. But what if it had? Recall that this virus is still the flu virus. It is subject to the genetic perturbations of shift and drift in which the genetic traits limiting its virulence and mortality can easily change. This virus continues its march around the globe, and it is uncertain whether it will temper or become more virulent.
Mother Nature has provided us an object lesson that preparation is priceless, and we should take heed. The lessons learned these past two months were many. First and foremost, we learned of the paramount need to effectively manage available resources during times of crisis. We recognized the value of a pre-established menu of roles and resources to facilitate and expedite the right solution and course of action rather than brainstorming at the last minute.
Also, we appreciated that many public-sector agencies depended on the logistics and resource capabilities of private-sector contractors to deliver, manage and maintain the necessary supplies of reagents and medications. We also learned of their logistical limitations but then witnessed the efficiency and speed of delivery of these key resources made possible through the application of best practices developed through years of competition and speed.
All this took place through a networked partnership among the officers of the private sector or those acting as officers for the private sector even if not yet recognized as such within the organizational structure, and the public sector. Thus, the intangible value of the officer for any skeptic was made tangible or proved.
This epidemic has taught us that time is of the essence when it comes to infectious disease. This virus circumnavigated the globe in less than two weeks, arguing for the need for faster mobilization, better communication, increased vigilance and, most important, planning. All those involved in this, our most recent response, should be commended and encouraged, for influenza respects no border and interacts with all of humanity for better or worse.
Now is the time to plan. Establish and embrace your officer.
Asa Hutchinson, chairman of the ReadyCommunities Partnership advisory board, is a former Republican member of the House of Representatives from Arkansas and former Department of Homeland Security undersecretary for border and transportation security. Michael G. Schmidt is professor of microbiology and director of the office of special programs at the Medical University of South Carolina.
Story here.