EMERGENCYNET NEWS 1997 TOP-TEN NEWS STORIES FOR EMERGENCY/NATIONAL SECURITY PERSONNEL

By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk & Crime Analyst,
Paul Anderson, ERRI Analyst
Jeremy Zakis, ERRI Asia and Pacific Desk
C. L. Staten, ERRI Senior Analyst,

It's time for what has proven to be one of our most popular feature articles as we go into our fourth year of publishing daily reports for the emergency response, military and intelligence communities.

It seemed that compiling the 1995 "Top-ten" was a little easier because there were more major stories with the downing of TWA Flight 800 and the terrorist bombing near Dharan, Saudi Arabia. But we feel that we have brought an interesting array of top stories to the table for 1997. Feel free to us know if you agree or disagree....

1. Series of Real-Time Reports involving the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in a Car Crash in Paris, France

EmergencyNet News *FLASH* Report

08/30/97 - 20:00CDT

Britain's Princess Diana Badly Injured in Crash
By C. L. Staten, ERRI Senior Analyst

Paris, France (EmergencyNet) -- According to Paris police, Princess Diana of England was critically injured this evening in an automobile crash near the river Seine, at the Pont de l'Alma bridge. Her companion in the car, Dodi Al Fayed, was believed killed in the accident, which reportedly happened shortly after midnight (Paris time), police said. The chauffeur of the vehicle was also believed killed in the incident and a fourth passenger, a bodyguard, was reported to be seriously injured.

ERRI Comment: Of limited applicability to other pertinent fire/police/ems/disaster/ military or intelligence concerns, this was undoubtedly a "traffic accident story" that claimed the world's attention and sympathy. If nothing else, it is sad testimony and a vivid demonstration of the hazards of "drinking and driving." It was one of the most downloaded/read stories on the ERRI website for a couple of months.

Click here to read the full story

2. LOS ANGELES TURNED INTO A WAR ZONE
By Steve Macko, ERRI Crime Analyst

Excerpted from the ENN Emergency Service Report-Saturday, March 1, 1997 Vol. 1, No. 60

LOS ANGELES (ENN) - The streets of Los Angeles were literally turned into a war zone on Friday morning. Bandits who botched a bank robbery turned their automatic weapons on police, bystanders and even television helicopters. Two robbers were killed and at least 17 people were wounded and injured in what may become one of the fierciest shootouts in U.S. history. The entire gunbattle was televised from start-to-finish on Los Angeles television.

ERRI Comment: Shown in real time on television, this story made many throughout the world realize how brutal and violent crime has become. It also brought visions of a future where heavily armed and well equipped criminals continue to assault under-armed police and innocent citizens, seemingly with impunity. Hopefully, this incident caused greater awareness and preparedness for the criminal of the future.

Click here to read the full story

3. Militants Attack Tourists in Egypt
by C. L. Staten, ERRI Senior Analyst

EmergencyNet News *FLASH* Report

11/17/97 - 07:30CST

Luxor, Eqypt (EmergencyNet News) Conflicting reports continue to be received about the number of dead and injured in a terrorist bus hijacking and firefight that took place today in Southern Egypt. The incident took place at the Deir al-Bahri temple, also known as Hatshepsut, in the Valley of the Kings on the west bank of the Nile. The popular archeological site is located 300 miles (500 km) south of Cairo.

While the official casualty figures remain uncertain, authorities said the drama began with the six gunmen hijacking a tour bus in Luxor, a stronghold for Islamic militants opposed to the government. An unknown number of tourists, possibly as many as 60 (according to the Reuters News Service at 7:53 AM EST) from Japan, France, and Switzerland, 3 Egyptian policemen, and 6 terrorists were reportedly wounded or killed in an exchange of gunfire between suspected Moslem militants and Egyptian security forces.

ERRI Comment: Occurring late in 1997, this event again showed the ferocity and brutal nature of fundamentalist extremists. The killing of dozens of innocent civilians was intended to show the Egyptian government that they do not have terrorism under control, as they might hope. This and other attacks on Egyptian tourists have a tremendously negative effect on the Egyptian economy...undoubtedly an intended consequence of the attacks.

Click here to read the full story

4. Twin Blasts in N. Atlanta - Abortion Clinic
By C. L. Staten, ERRI Senior Analyst

ENN FLASH Report 01/16/97 - 09:47CST

(ENN) Atlanta, GA - Preliminary reports are being received of two explosions at a suburban building that allegedly houses an abortion clinic. One reported explosion went off near the building prompting the response of Fulton County Police, Fire, EMS, and bomb squad personnel. Shortly thereafter, another explosion was heard. Initial reports suggest that at least two emergency responders may have been injured in the second blast. Some civilian injuries are also believed to have occurred. The severity of injuries received has not been ascertained at this time.

ERRI Comment: This story is significant in that it firmly gave evidence to the fact that emergency responders WILL be targetted by secondary explosions in future extremist actions. The publicity surrounding it may have have finally awakened the emergency community that "it can happen here."

Click here to read the full story

5. Series of Mail Bombs - New York/Washington/Egypt - January, 1997

ENN Instant Update - 01/13/97 - 13:07CST (ENN) NYPD units are being kept busy this afternoon, as calls come in from various midtown offices as suspicious packages and letters show up in their mail. Earlier this afternoon, the NYPD Bomb Sq. disabled one confirmed letter bomb to the Al-Hayat news agency in the UN Building. This was after two of the same type letter bombs went off in the London office of Al-Hayat earlier. As police were handling the UN situation, a call came in for a "suspicious package" at the Israeli Consulate to the UN located at 800 Third Ave. at East 42 St. However, that package was declared as "properly identified" by Bomb Squad members, indicating that it was not a bomb.

01/11/97 - Letter Bombs (SNS News Service - Shomron-Israel) -- After intercepting eight letter bombs in the United States last week, agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) stated they suspect Moslem fundamentalists. According to terrorism experts, the devices "were strikingly familiar to 14 letter bombs seized in Tel-Aviv in 1990 and suspected by Israel to have come from a radical Palestinian group." Source: Newsweek Magazine

01/04/97 - WASHINGTON, DC -- Investigators strongly suspect that letter bombs sent to Washington and Kansas were armed with Semtex, a plastic explosive used for some of the most sensational terror attacks of recent years, security experts said on Saturday. FBI investigators are tracing the source of eight bombs mailed inside greeting cards addressed to the Washington offices of the Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat and a federal prison in Leavenworth, Kan. They would not talk about their findings. But Vince Cannistraro, a former CIA counterterrorism official, said an orange color on the explosive material and a distinctive odor prompted investigators to suspect they were made with Semtex. He said his information came from people familiar with the investigation. "It's pretty certain it was Semtex, but as of Friday, lab tests had not been done," Cannistraro said. On Saturday, FBI spokesman Rex Tomb would not confirm or deny the presence of Semtex.

ENN Special Report 01/03/96 - 01:00CST -- (ENN) Washington, DC - The FBI has this evening issued a warning about letter bombs, mailed from Alexandria, Egypt, and received at the National Press Club building in Washington DC. Seven devices were received at the offices of the Al-Hayat, an Arabic newspaper. They were described as being in plain, white envelopes, 5 1/2" X 61/2", with computer-generated addresses, no return address. They were post-marked on or around Dec. 21, 1996 from an Egyptian post office. They appeared to be Christmas cards.

SECURITY ALERT - issued 12/24/97 via ENN Daily Report-Vol. 2, No. 359
By: Paul Copher, ENN Counter-Terrorist Analyst-at-Large -- (ENN)

The nice Christmas cards that use tiny circuit boards to play music when opened are now being bought and can be used to act as the final circuit in the detonation of letter bombs. The device is removed from the card and fixed to the letter bomb. The flat DataSheet, Flex-X or even thinly cut and rolled out C-4 can be fitted with a detonator and the wiring tied into the musical circuit board. The tiny battery in the board has been found to have enough of a charge to fire some detonators. The explosive can then be fitted into a magazine or book. When opened the circuit will send the detonator a current of electricity and detonate the blasting cap and explosive.

The trend of bomb making is going high tech with smaller batteries set ups, mini circuit boards, detonator types and even E cells. One recent find included a solar cell tied into a device that would detonate when explosed to interior lights and looked like a hand held calculator. When the panel was exposed to a desk light and the calculator turned on it would explode.

ERRI Comment: This whole series of events caused quite a stir at the beginning of 1997, and then just as quickly, slipped from the mindset of the public. It is important as a demonstration of another tactic of irregular/asymetric warfare that is designed to undermine public confidence in our government's ability to manage such circumstances.

Click here to read the full story

6. ALGERIAN TERRORIST GROUPS
By Steve Macko, ENN Editor

Excerpted from the ERRI Daily Intelligence Report-03/06/97- Vol. 3, No. 065

Between 250 and 300 people, and probably more, died in terrorist violence during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in Algeria. Ramadan began on 10 January and during that time some of the murdered victims included a 13-month-old baby, a strangled 12-year-old boy and five girls had their throats cut.

The most ruthless of Algeria's Islamic fundamentalist terrorist groups is the Armed Islamic Group (GIA). Days before Ramadan began, the GIA issued a warning that it did intend to increase its attacks during Ramadan -- and the group lived up to its promise.

But the GIA is not responsible for all the violent deaths in Algeria. The U.S. State Department and the human rights group Amnesty International have said that Algerian security forces carry out some of the killings. But all-in-all, two terrorists groups have dominated the conflict that has killed about 60,000 people since December of 1991.

ERRI Comment: Since this report, literally thousands of people have been hacked to death, shot, blown-up with bombs, and killed in every other concievable way in Algeria...Algeria has very probably been the world leader in atrocities in 1997.

Click here to read the full story

7. Emergency Response to Chemical/Biological Terrorist Incidents
By: Clark L. Staten, Executive Director

Emergency Response & Research Institute

Originally presented 08/07/97

In March of 1996, Fire Chief Lamont Ewell, who was then the president of the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), told the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations that it would be the responsibility of local firefighting, police and emergency medical units to cope with a terrorist attack that used nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. He also made the startling announcement that Fire/Police/EMS services, collectively, were not prepared for the challenge.

Ewell affirmed something that the Emergency Response and Research Institute (ERRI) in Chicago has been saying for a number of years. The chief told the packed Senate hearing room, "It will be local fire and emergency service organizations...who will have to pick up the pieces. Of the overall government efforts to prevent and respond to terrorist incidents, these local fire, law enforcement and emergency medical services agencies are the least prepared to respond to a chemical or biological terrorist incident." International emergency analysts say that the same thing can be said for emergency service agencies all over the world.

Is a terrorist chemical and/or biological attack inevitable? A report released on the same day by the U.S. Senate Subcommittee says that it is. The report said, "It is not a matter of IF, but rather WHEN such an event will occur. Many of the terrorist groups of today appear more and more likely to utilize weapons of mass destruction."

ERRI Comment: After a several years of internal struggle, it would appear that the national security apparatus and emergency response community have finally recognized the implications and possibilities of the use of weapons of mass destruction (particularly chemical and biological weapons). In fact, today, some experts even say that this is probably the greatest threat to the security of the United States.

Click here to read the full story

8. Reflections on the 1997 Commission on Critical Infrastructure Protection (PCCIP) Report
By Clark Staten, Senior Analyst Emergency Response & Research Institute

10/23/97 - 16:30CST

One of the greatest challenges for the United States government in the coming decade is the effective protection of this country's critical infrastructure. Or, so says an assessment by a panel of experts convened by President Bill Clinton, to study this increasingly more crucial issue. Specifically, the committee studied the security of the nation's telecommunications systems, electrical power grids, transportation systems, gas/oil delivery and storage systems, water purification and delivery mechanisms, banking and finance centers, Fire/Police/EMS/Disaster systems and other government services.

ERRI Comment: Although some may disagree with this choice, the future of terrorism and asymetric conflict will undoubtedly be changed by the future use of crackers, hackers, information warfare techniques, and infrastructure attacks. As we all become more computerized and connected...we also become more vulnerable. Superiority in any area of endevour cannot be attained without a price...we probably are going to have to pay it in order to be more secure.

Click here to read the full story

9. MASS SUICIDE NEAR SAN DIEGO
By Paul Anderson, ENN Correspondent

From ERRI EMERGENCY SERVICES REPORT--Thursday, March 27, 1997--Vol. 1 - 086

RANCHO SANTA FE, CALIFORNIA (ENN) - In what appears to be the nation's biggest mass suicide this century, 39 men and women were found dead inside a million-dollar mansion near San Diego on Wednesday night. All of the victims were found lying in apparent peace on their backs, arms at their sides, each covered across the face and chest with a triangular shroud of purple cloth.

ERRI Comment: Easily dismissed by some as just the deaths "some spaceship wackos," this incident did point out the power and possibilities of cults. Although certainly not on par with the infamous "Jonestown Massacre" in Guyana, it does still point out that there are any number of groups that can engage in a "final secision." This one was peaceful for outsiders... others may not be.

Click here to read the full story

10.(tie). COMPANIES SHOULD PREPARE FOR KIDNAPPING SITUATIONS
By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst

ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPOR-ERRI Risk Assessment Services-Thursday, May 15, 1997 Vol. 3 - 135

According to two experts who spoke at the annual Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc. conference, corporations who are seen as being vulnerable to kidnapping plots should think about how to avoid becoming victims and what to do should precautionary measures fail. Companies that have operations abroad, especially in the high-risk countries of Latin America, should be ready to deal with kidnap and extortion attempts when they arise. Past experience shows that most companies are not ready.

ERRI Comment: This early May report was shown to be extremely accurate, with an extraordinary number of kidnappings/hostage taking throughout the year. Countries frequently mentioned include the Philippines, Colombia, Mexico, Chechnya and other former Soviet Bloc. A majority of these acts are motivated by financial motives, although political/religious/ ideological acts can't be ruled out.

Click here to read the full story

10.(tie). ORGANIZED CRIME IS BLEEDING RUSSIA DRY
By Steve Macko, ERRI Crime Analyst

From: ERRI EMERGENCY SERVICES REPORT-EmergencyNet NEWS Service-Thursday, July 3, 1997 Vol. 1 - 184

According to a recent study conducted in the United States, almost 50 percent of the Russian economy is controlled by organized crime and billions upon billions of dollars are leaving the country as a result. The study was issued by the World Bank and said: "In Russia, organized crime groups are dominating both legitimate and illegitimate economic sectors simultaneously."

ERRI Comment: Another EmergencyNet News story proved true by time and events, Macko's July comments were later reiterated by Louis Freeh and any number of others. Organized crime in Russia remains a growing problem and is still reaching into many other parts of the world...as well as having a profound effect on the economy of the former Soviet Union.

Click here to read the full story

Emergency Response and Research Institute
6348 N Milwaukee Ave, Suite 312, Chicago, Illinois 60646 USA
773-631-ERRI Voice/Voice Mail
773-631-4703 Fax
773-631-3467 Computer/Modem - EMERGENCY BBS
Internet e-mail: sysop@emergency.com
WWW page: http://www.emergency.com
Telnet: emergency.com

Return to the EmergencyNet News Page