Prepared for the worst

Deepa Bharath

It’s been two years, but nobody’s guard is down, local public safety

officials say.

Police still continue to remain at “a heightened state of

alertness,” said Newport Beach Sgt. Steve Shulman.

“Things haven’t changed substantially since Sept. 11,” he said.

“We have procedures we follow within the department as the alerts

change. But from a day-to-day standpoint, things haven’t changed all

that much.”

Newport Beach and Costa Mesa are also members of the Orange County

Anti-Terrorism Task Force formed by Sheriff Mike Carona after the

2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington D.C.

“Several of our officers attend the task force meetings and then

disseminate the information throughout the department,” Shulman said.

Costa Mesa has taken several proactive steps to get the community

involved with disaster preparedness, said Fire Chief Jim Ellis.

“We formed a Citizen Corps Council to educate and prepare our

citizens,” he said. “We’ve also trained 27 people through our new

Citizens Fire Academy. Because ultimately, it is up to individuals to

take care of themselves, their neighbors and their community.”

The Fire Department “weaves” terrorism-related information into

all its programs, Ellis said.

“It’s usually a segment,” he said. “We do that so we don’t tire

out people giving all the information at once.”

Ellis said the response to the Citizens Corps has been good.

“The thing that has always impressed me about our community is the

way everyone comes together in a time of need,” he said.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol also counts on the

public’s help to root out terrorist-related problems, said Lt. Greg

Russell.

“We definitely ask people to call us when they see something

suspicious in the harbor,” he said. “It’s very important they do

that.”

The Harbor Patrol and other local public safety agencies also work

hand in hand with the U.S. Coast Guard, which is now part of the

Homeland Security Department.

“It’s not changed our function all that much,” said Lt. Stephen

LaLonde. “We’ve continued to be very active in securing our ports

here in Southern California and we also perform our marquee functions

that range from search and rescue to environmental protection.”

John Wayne Airport has remained at the same level of alertness for

the last two years, said spokesman Justin McCusker.

“We’ve redesigned our baggage screening checkpoints to balance

security with convenience for passengers,” he said. “We’ve

consistently met or exceeded security standards and we hope to

continue doing that.”

Despite heavy protection on land and water, a potential threat

many forget is bioterrorism, says Philip Felgner, researcher at UC

Irvine’s Center for Virus Research.

“I’m sure we’ll face bioterrorism at some point in the future,” he

said. “If we don’t prepare for it, we’ll feel pretty stupid when it

happens.”

Felgner said the nation is far from prepared for such an attack.

“It takes time to come up with the defenses such as vaccines

because of the time needed to develop them,” he said.

Felgner said the government, scientists and researchers must get

into the mindset they had during the Cold War.

“During that time, scientists tried to think about what the next

weapon would be,” he said. “They thought about it to create the

necessary defense. That’s the kind of attitude we need right now.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.