Introduction
Nothing is as confusing as telephone calls that warn people of imminent destruction from explosions and other forms of attacks. This is because there is the likelihood that the person would be playing with the organization or the individuals concerned. It is also possible that there is the alleged danger and any time-wasting is a sure way of sending lives and property down the drain. The space between the two possibilities creates confusion. In this essay, I will explain what I will do in my capacity as the harbormaster after receiving a phone call informing me of the presence of a bomb in the quay, which is the ship landing area at the port. I choose to have a separate Port Facility Security Officer (PFSO) for this essay. The essay will end with a brief conclusion.
Body
To begin with, there is an extreme need for clear thought and discipline especially in times of emergencies (Finlay & Drewitt 25). I will therefore try to be as composed as possible to ensure that I am aware of every action that I will be doing since in the long run, it will have a huge implication on not only the port facility but the lives of the employees and other people attached to the port facility. Figuring out how to use the available security resources to minimize damage is the main focus of any security actions that I will take. The major considerations in my thinking will be the employees who will be reporting to work without knowing of the imminent blast or the security scare; if it turns out to be a hoax.
The three ships that are ready to get to the harbor with one carrying gas and the other two carrying methanol, all of which are inflammable materials will also have to be dealt with to protect both the crew members as well as the ships and the contents. With all these in mind, the single available human resource other than me is the Port Facility Security Officer (PFSO) and this means that efficiency and speed will make a difference.
The Port Facility Security Officer (PFSO) will be given a quick briefing regarding the message from the anonymous caller. This will be followed by quick access to the communication resources in the office such as telephones to make the required communication to the relevant agencies (Finlay & Drewitt 23). The immediate concern is to treat the threat as a real one with the possibility of not only destroying the port facility but also killing several people and destroying ships as well. The first call will be to the bomb squad. A quick explanation of the case will be made and the significance of observing time will be stressed.
Meanwhile, all the people within the port will be given messages using the port’s communication equipment such as the intercom or loudspeakers to move out of the facility immediately. The alarm system will be switched on to ensure that the attention of all the people at the port is not missed. The Port Facility Security Officer (PFSO) will handle this segment of evacuation as I handle outreach or calling for outside intervention. After setting the alarm and the intercom, we will leave the port facility with all the portable communication equipment to continue with the evacuation. This is necessary to avoid being killed in case an explosion occurs at any point.
As the bomb squad personnel prepare to come, the police, emergency services, the security agencies of the government, the ships enforcement agency, security and intelligence services, local and national resilience forums, and customs will be informed (Finlay & Drewitt 23).
The security and intelligence services will particularly focus on tracking the origin of the call that was made to my office and the possibility of finding not only the caller but his credibility. The police will be called upon to stop the entry of both vehicles and people to the port facility. They will also clear the way for the evacuation of all the people and other crucial items that can be moved from the port facility if this can assist reduce any danger to people and property.
The notification of the agencies and organizations mentioned above will help not only handle the chaos that will arise if there is an explosion but also deals with those who will be affected by the trauma caused by a scare if the call is discovered to be false. The extra help from the agencies will also give the space for dealing with the ships that are on their way to the port. The best way that I will use in handling the ship that is on its way to the port will be the utilization of the Automatic Identification System to know the identity of the ships and their location.
Since they are nearly arriving at the port, communicating directly to the captains and the other crew members to inform them of the situation and advising them to make a diversion or a turnabout will be my focus. Therefore I will contact the crew and inform the pilot who is about to be picked by the cutter not to come out of the ship but instead steer it in a different direction as the situation at the port gets a thorough security check. The same communication will be done to the two other ships that are carrying methanol. What if the communication systems of the port have been compromised by the attackers? Is this possible?
Interference with the port communication systems by the attackers is a possibility. If they were able to sneak an explosive to the quay, only the phone system may be functional probably spared so that they would communicate to the office regarding the bomb. If the communication system through which the other ships can be reached is disabled or not functioning, the smaller boats or ships that are at the port will be made use of. This will take extra waiting as the plots to these vessels will have to be allowed into the facility after being called from either their homes or wherever location they may be during the emergency.
These vessels will be directed to the directions of the incoming ships to ensure that the message regarding the chaotic nature of the port is delivered and the ships are redirected to other routes. This is however an option that is possible if the pilots for the light vessels are easily accessible. In case the captains are far away and they have to walk through the port to access the vessels, this is a potential risk in that they can be killed in case the explosion occurs. In this scenario, other means of communication such as the use of helicopters or vessels launched from different safe areas will be used to reach out to the approaching ships and guide them to safe areas.
Leaving the above aside, it is good to assume that by this time the bomb squad has arrived at the port and everyone has been evacuated from the facility. If the explosion will not have occurred, a roll call for the personnel who take care of the port and who may have been at the facility as well as the other employees will be taken at their point of assembly. This is necessary to ensure that no individual is trapped at any location in the port. It is also a way of trying to establish if there may have been any involvements of the people attached to the port in the security breach.
In addition to the above, security personnel who will have arrived in general and the bomb experts, in particular, will be consulted to give guidance on where the other parties will be positioned so that in case of an explosion, help to those in danger will be offered as efficiently as possible. The reason for this is that if some of the agencies such as the emergency services situate their camp close to the port facility; their personnel may be killed by the explosion; in case it occurs. Therefore the bomb experts will help calculate the worst-case scenario assuming the heaviest bomb explodes and use this calculation to decide the safest distance to have each of these agencies’ camps. The police force, the armed services, and the other law enforcement agencies will help in enforcing these instructions. What then happens from here?
At this point, there are two directions that my actions will take as the harbormaster. The first direction will be determined by whether the explosion will have occurred while the other will be dictated by the absence of an explosion. The absence of an explosion can be due to the disarming of another bomb by the bomb squad or the confirmation of the possibility that the call was not made by a genuine person and therefore there was no bomb.
If the bomb will have exploded by this time, the emergency services at the port will be guided to all areas of the port to deal with all the facets of an explosion. The firefighters will be shown around the port and shown any helpful items that may not have been destroyed by the explosion. But this will be after the bomb experts have declared the port safe to handle. The people who may have gotten injured by the explosion will also be attended to by the on-sight medical team who I will have informed even before the explosion but after the anonymous call.
The other angle is the direction of my actions if there happens to be no bomb or the bomb squad manages to disarm the bomb safely. In this case, my responsibility will be to ensure that the port returns to normal operations but with serious security measures. A thorough check of the entire port will be the first thing to authorize. The aim for this will be to establish the areas of vulnerability and what might have been compromised for the attackers to deliver the explosive to the quay. The work of the Port Facility Security Officer will come in handy as he will be required to assemble his security team and check the entire port area.
I will also order check and control systems for both vehicles and people entering the port and this will be done to the maximum instead of the usual 20% check on human traffic. The intensity of security actions will also differ depending on whether there was a bomb that the bomb squad disabled or the call was not credible and therefore there was no bomb. How will the actions differ?
Disarming the bomb and avoiding an explosion still means that the port is vulnerable and the security system has been seriously compromised. Therefore I will order that thorough checks are carried out and the compromised areas are identified and appropriate action is taken immediately. Liaison with intelligence services as well as other security and emergency agencies will be at maximum levels in case their help is needed. On the other hand, if the call turns out to be a hoax, chances are that no compromise may have been done to the security of the port. My actions will therefore focus mainly on restoring calm and normal operations while security concerns are given a thorough assessment by the Port Facility Security Officer.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the evacuation of the port will be a priority as a way of avoiding losing human life. Involving the relevant government agencies such as the security and intelligence services and the emergency services will also be prioritized to ensure that the help needed to stop the approaching ships from sailing to danger is availed. The coordination of operations in dealing with emergencies if the explosion occurs will be also of importance as will be the restoration of normal operations if an explosion does not occur.
Work Cited
Finlay, Alexe & Drewitt, Jerry. Port Security and the ISPS Code. London:IIR Limited, 2010. Print.