FEDERAL
RESPONSE TO DOMESTIC TERRORISM INVOLVING WMD TRAINING FOR FIRST
RESPONDERS WITNESS STATEMENT CHIEF RAYMOND M. DOWNEY SPECIAL OPERATIONS
COMMAND FIRE DEPARTMENT CITY OF NEW YORK MARCH 21, 1998
Good
morning Mr. Chairman and committee members. My name is Ray Downey
and I'm the Chief of Rescue Operations for the Fire Department
in the City of New York. First I would like to thank you for holding
this hearing today. The Fire Service greatly appreciates the fact
that your committee has concerns regarding WMD. The fire service
is greatly concerned being first responders that will eventually
have to deal with the issues of WMD. My intent today is to speak
not only as a member of the FDNY, but for the entire Fire Service.
I have had the unique experience to respond to incidents of WMD
both as a first responder and as a federal asset that arrived
on the scene some twelve hours after the incident. This is one
of many concerns that the fire service has about the training
and expectations of both the fire service and federal support
that is being promised in the event of an incident involving WMD.
During the World Trade Center bombing I was on the scene immediately
after the bombing had taken place. Unless you have been their;
you cannot fully appreciate what firefighters face during an incident
of WMD terrorism. The fire service has always been respected by
the public for their immediate response capability to the calls
of those in danger. With that response comes the dedication and
fearless courage displayed by these firefighters. It wasn't any
different at the World Trade Center. As a result of this terrorism
incident, firefighters that operated at this incident still question
what would have happened had that bomb been a "dirty" bomb. Would
we take the same actions today, if a major bombilic, were to occur
in our response district? Five years later, we are better prepared,
have more knowledge about WMD, but still see many short falls
in the area of First Responder capabilities for dealing with and
mitigating incidents of WMD. The fear of Chemical or Biological
terrorism is foremost in the minds of every firefigther. What
we read and hear about regarding the nations preparations and
training for these incidents does not go far enough. During the
World Trade Center bombing firefighters not only faced a difficult
fire operation, but had to evacuate almost 50,000 occupants from
the Trade Center complex. More than 500 victims were treated for
various injuries, while another 600 responded to hospitals on
their own. What would have happened if they had been contaminated
by a chemical agent? In 1993 not a fire department in the United
States could have handled an incident involving a chemical agent
affecting this many victims. Can the fire service handle the same
potential incident in 1998 after five years of additional preparation
and training? The answer in most cases is a "NO". Why? Lack of
sufficient funding and training for WMD. Two years after the Oklahoma
City bombing 9 Chief Gary Marrs of the Oklahoma Fire Department
providing witness testimony stated that we, the fire service,
are no better prepared than we were back in 1995. Why? The training
that has been given with federal funding is not being directed
to the "First responder", and the lack of providing funding for
the necessary equipment for these responders is directly related
to the lack of our preparedness, My experience of working for
sixteen (16) days as the Operations Chief for the Urban Search
and Rescue Teams in Oklahoma City only reinforces my feelings
about the needs of the first responders. The Oklahoma City Fire
Department has not received the real credit they deserve for the
heroic actions they took during those first few hours before any
help or support arrived from outside their jurisdiction. As was
the case in the rescue effort during the World Trade Center bombing,
the same results occurred during the Oklahoma City bombing. Not
one victim in either incident died as a result of awaiting rescue
by the firefighters after the bombing. The first responders, AKA,
the firefighters in both cases performed these heroic actions
only because they were able to-be on the scene within minutes
and were properly trained and equipped. But, what if that bomb
had an additional chemical agent dispersed with the explosion.
Would the success rate been the same" Not likely. What would happen
if it occurred today? Would we be prepared? Some fire departments
have increased their capabilities, but the majority of the country
is still not prepared for these type incidents. In Atlanta the
experience gained by the fire service after the bombing of the
Family Planning Center, undoubtedly saved lives of firefighters
and other emergency personnel that responded to the bombing of
the Gay and Lesbian Nite Club. They had learned their lessons
from the previous incidents. We have not had this opportunity
when dealing with chemical, biological or nuclear terrorist incidents.
What is it that the fire service needs to be prepared for these
type incidents'? The preparation, training and equipment requirements
should be approached from a bottom up planning process. Permit
the first responders to get involved with the many various agencies
at the Federal level that are preparing terrorism training programs
that will ultimately affect them. This can be accomplished by
reaching out to the first responder and finding out exactly what
the needs of the fire service are. The federal government needs
to provide assistance and funding, for training, detection equipment,
personal protective equipment and mass decontamination capabilities.
The realization by the federal government that the resources that
they will supply to local jurisdictions during a WMD incident
will be of support role and work under the direction of the local
incident commander. If these goals can be reached the fire service
will be much more capable of dealing with WMD incidents. I want
to thank you again for this opportunity to appear as a witness
before you today and express to you on behalf of the entire fire
service our sincere gratitude for the all the work and accomplishments
that have benefited the fire service through your efforts. It
is the first responder that will be facing the challenges that
WMD presents, they are the ones that need the funding and assistance
that the Federal Government can provide.
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