NYPD on lookout for terrorist takeover of TV outlets

[southerngale]

By TOM HAYS
Associated Press Writer

March 19, 2003, 1:27 AM EST


NEW YORK -- The New York Police Department has stepped up security outside major television news outlets in Manhattan to prevent possible takeovers by terrorists who may want to broadcast anti-American messages.

"It's a concern, especially with international television companies," police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said Tuesday at a news conference announcing wartime security measures for the city.

Under a sweeping plan called Operation Atlas, police officials will deploy special patrols to guard television stations clustered in midtown Manhattan and elsewhere.

The step was not prompted by a specific threat or intelligence, police said. But counterterrorism experts and broadcast executives have viewed television news studios as potential targets since the Sept. 11 attack.

"It's something we have to think about and plan for," said Sandy Genelius, spokeswoman for CBS News.

An ABC News spokesman, Jeffrey Schneider, said the network "appreciates the efforts of the NYPD to enhance our security."

The 36,500-officer police department, the nation's largest, began formulating Operation Atlas in recent weeks as war with Iraq grew more certain. The operation arose from fears that during a conflict the city could become a target for retaliation by terrorists.

The plan, which could cost more than $5 million a week, is "the most comprehensive terror prevention program our city has implemented," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.

Once the war begins, police plan to mobilize hundreds of extra officers to patrol in and around locations considered susceptible to suicide bombers or other attacks _ places of worship, landmarks, tourist attractions, Wall Street, train stations among them. Other officers will staff checkpoints at bridges and tunnels in Manhattan and elsewhere.

The NYPD will pay special attention to ferry boats and subways, where officers have been running drills to converge on train cars and platforms at the first sign of trouble. Those officers will use dogs trained to sniff for explosives.

The department has already deployed heavily armed units known as Hercules teams to visit potential targets such as Times Square to disrupt terrorist reconnaissance. Separate units have been trained to detect and contain biological and chemical hazards.

Bloomberg said the plan would include the resumption of military flight patrols above the city. In a related move Tuesday, the Federal Aviation Administration put tighter restrictions on airspace in a 30-mile radius around John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Operation Atlas also calls for police commanders in each of the five boroughs to develop plans so they can operate as independent departments if police headquarters in Manhattan were disabled.

The $5 million weekly cost would cover overtime for officers reassigned from their usual details.

Bloomberg said he would be in Washington on Wednesday, meeting with the state's congressional delegation and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. He said that he would bring up issues of cost but that, no matter what, "We will not skimp on protecting the city."


http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-ny--nyc-security0319mar18,0,4203684.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire

[vbhoutex]

Wow! Sounds like NYC is ready!!! I guess I would be more than ready after what they have gone through!!

[wx247]

Hmmm... never thought about that possibility. I wonder if they had received specific intelligence about that? Glad they are prepared in any case!