-----Original Message----- From: NIPC Watch [mailto:nipcwatch@private] Sent: Monday, July 22, 2002 8:15 AM To: IG Unsecured Subject: [Infragard_unsecured] Daily Report 07/22/02 NIPC Daily Report 22 July 2002 The NIPC Watch and Warning Unit compiles this report to inform recipients of issues impacting the integrity and capability of the nations critical infrastructures. Lawmakers propose volunteer corps to guard nation's technology. On 19 July, the US Senate approved legislation to create the National Emergency Technology Guard, teams of experts available to prevent and respond to terror attacks on the nation's communications infrastructure. The bill, known as the Science and Technology Emergency Mobilization Act, also establishes a government agency to coordinate the sharing of security technology and authorizes $35 million in grants to create emergency communications programs. The bill also provides for the creation of a "virtual technology reserve" of privately owned equipment that can be loaned to authorities in an emergency. The House of Representatives has approved a similar plan as part of a homeland security package, and now the two legislative bodies must agree on a common approach before sending the bill to the President. (AFP, 21 Jul) House panel eases deadline for scanners in airports. On 19 July, a select congressional homeland security committee voted to extend the deadline for government to install equipment at airports that would detect explosives in checked baggage. The House panel reversed a vote it took earlier in the day and approved the initiative to push back the year-end deadline for 429 airports. The Transportation Security Administration, under the proposal endorsed by the panel in a 6-3 vote, would have until 31 December 2003, to install explosive-detection equipment at the airports that cannot meet the current deadline of 31 December 2002. Many major airports and airlines said the deadline was too ambitious and could not be met. (Washington Times, 20 Jul) DIA seeks $50 million for bomb detection. Denver International Airport (DIA) has asked federal aviation security officials for $50 million for new baggage conveyors that would allow the airport to integrate explosives-detection machines with the airport's bag-handling systems. For $15 million, the airport could install explosives-detection equipment to serve one bank of DIA ticket counters by the end of this year. When Congress passed an aviation security law late last year, lawmakers said all checked baggage at US airports must be screened for explosives by 31 December. (Denver Post, 19 Jul) Fire at Con Ed disrupts power in Manhattan. An electrical transformer at a Consolidated Edison plant exploded in flames on 20 July, knocking out power for nearly eight hours to a large area of Lower Manhattan in New York. Con Edison officials said the power failure was caused by two substations on the Lower West Side that were knocked out of service because of the blaze. The power failure also snarled the subways and caused blocks of traffic tie-ups throughout downtown Manhattan as police officers directed cars, trucks, and pedestrians through intersections without working stoplights. Before electricity was restored the night of 20 July, it was estimated that about 63,500 customers were without power. (New York Times, 21 Jul) Security of radioactive material at low ebb. Machines that operate using large amounts of radioactivity have become commonplace in medicine, research, and construction, among other fields. With the exception of nuclear plants and weapons sites, the nation's system of radiological safeguards is aimed at preventing accidents, not thwarting well-planned thefts. Individuals are required to take safety courses before getting a license to own even small amounts of radioactive materials, but are not required to undergo criminal or background checks. A federal law to require background checks for hazardous materials haulers is due to be implemented within the next two months. (Sacramento Bee, 21 Jul) Lightning starts ChevronTexaco fire in Nigeria. A huge fire broke out on 20 July at ChevronTexaco's main oil terminal. A bolt of lightning during an early morning storm ignited the blaze at the multimillion-dollar Escravos terminal in southeastern Nigeria. The lightning set fire to a storage tank containing about 180,000 barrels of crude oil, the company said. About 80,000 barrels were pumped out of the burning tank. Company firefighters were deployed to contain the blaze and additional support had been requested from other oil operators. There were no immediate reports of casualties. Nigeria is the world's sixth-largest exporter of oil and the fifth-largest supplier to the US. (Associated Press, 21 Jul) WWU Comment: Nigeria being the fifth largest supplier of oil to the US, this article illustrates the continued dependence on foreign oil exports and the importance of their ability to respond to and mitigate potential threats and disasters; even those from nature.
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