The extensive trainings conducted at military installations have inspired similar trainings for many civilian agencies. In 2013, the United States Park Police discovered the U.S. Army's "rehearsal of concept" drill, which they successfully used to plan for the presidential inauguration and will use the same concept for the upcoming 4th of July.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides valuable resources for those responsible for or involved in planning a special event. These resources provide information on planning the event, assessing the hazards and threats, training personnel and volunteers, and exercising based on lessons learned from past events.
Culture plays a key role in how communities plan for, respond to, and recover from disasters. In South Korea, the cultural behaviors surrounding training, regulations, and obedience all may have played a role in the number of people who died when the Sewol ferry sunk on 16 April 2014.
Deficiencies in the current U.S. security efforts at airports have raised various concerns. Examining past breaches in security and defining the roles of law enforcement agencies are critical security steps. However, passengers also must be prepared to sacrifice some level of convenience to ensure safer and more secure airports and air travel.
In the area of emergency management, teams and organizations strive to mitigate the outcome of any potential or actual emergency. Such intervention, though, requires trust in team members to perform their tasks when needed. As with any successful football team or racecar pit crew, emergency managers also must devote the time to train together as a team.
Ideally, widespread radiological and nuclear prevention efforts will prevent a nuclear detonation from ever occurring within the United States, but the investment in preplanning for the possible aftermath is time well spent should this worst-case scenario ever occur. The Manhattan Project and the Cold War provide valuable lessons that could save thousands of lives in the future.
A DomPrep report published in March 2014 revealed some misconceptions about a valuable resource provided by the National Guard. Civil support teams provide no-cost assets to local jurisdictions for incidents, trainings, and exercises. As threats and missions evolve, local agencies should be familiar with all the tools in their toolboxes.
The use and acceptance of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology for the law enforcement community is changing, with a great potential for broader uses. By integrating radiation sensors with UAVs, law enforcement officers could better intercept suspected threats. However, the public is not yet "sold" on the concept of such UAV applications.
The changing conditions in the Middle East and North Africa, the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and Iraq, and the impact of Iran's nuclear program each have serious national security implications. To mitigate the emerging nuclear threat, agencies at all levels of government should perform five critical actions.
Although there has not been another significant attack on U.S. soil since 9/11, the threat of terrorists acquiring materials to create weapons of mass destruction still exists. Leaders of countries around the world recently met to discuss the current nuclear and radiological threats and to develop preventive measures to secure the "ingredients" for nuclear bombs.
