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USFA Master
List
One
of the responsibilities of the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) is to gather
fire safety information about U.S. hotels and motels and determine which places
are safe to use by travelers on government business. Hotels and motels that
are considered safe are placed on a National Master List. If you're not on the
list, you don't get any of the $25 billion spent per year on government travel.
To get on the list, hotel/motel management has to certify that, among other
things, the structure has smoke detectors and, if four floors or higher, has
fire sprinklers. Incredibly, the USFA does not verify; it simply accepts the
certification at face value.
This
was revealed recently at a Holiday Inn property in Marietta, Georgia. A fire
there killed one and injured 20 others. Fire investigators discovered that the
hotel, a seven-story structure, did not have sprinklers. Further investigation
revealed that the hotel got on the list by filling out an online form and e-mailing
it to the USFA. The hotel owner explained that an administrative "mistake"
had been made. (Source: Atlanta Journal and Constitution, January 21, 2006.)
Gatling
Guns Protect Research Lab
Not far from
San Francisco is the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory where plutonium is studied
and stored in an area called the Superblock. The lab, which in the not too distant
past was cited for serious security breaches, is ramping up its protection program
with firepower. It is acquiring an undisclosed number of Gatling guns that will
be mounted at strategic points and on vehicles. The gun's name is the Dillon
Aero M134d; it is electric-powered (AC or DC); has six-barrels; and fires 3,000
to 4,000 rounds per minute (50 rounds or higher per second).
A
single gun costs $60,000 but the cost is infinitesimal compared to the loss
of plutonium. Linton Brooks, head of the National Nuclear Security Administration,
said, "Firepower is an important part of a protective strategy against
people who are willing to die," referring obviously to terrorists. (Source:
SecurityInfoWatch.com, February 6, 2006.)
Forbes
Chooses Protection Plus
Protection Plus
Security Corporation has signed a two-year agreement to provide security services
for Forbes, a financial services company and publisher of Forbes magazine. (Source:
Security Director News, January 2006.)
Sting
Operation Nets TSA Screeners
A Sting Operation
at Washington National Airport caught two Transportation Security Administration
(TSA) screeners stealing prescription drugs from passengers in wheel chairs.
One of the thieves admitted to stealing drugs from passengers more than 20 times
in the previous 6 months. The two arrests brought the number of such arrests
to 172 since 2002. (Source: Security Letter, January 3, 2006.)
Rape
Victim Awarded $9 Million
A woman
who was raped and beaten in a Marietta, Georgia, apartment complex six
years ago won a jury award of $9 million against EPT Management Co., the
owner of the Hampton Village Apartments where the incident took place.
The
woman was leaving when two men forced her back into her apartment, robbed
her at gunpoint, and raped her. The lawsuit accused the apartment complex
of failing to maintain and secure the apartments. The lawsuit also accused
the complex of creating a nuisance by not remedying the dangerous conditions
that had been present for a continuous period of time.
Another
woman was raped in the same apartment complex less than two years before the
incident in question. According to the lawsuit, the complex failed to make the
necessary adjustments to its security in order to prevent another crime from
taking place. (Source: Security Law Newsletter, January 2006.)
Back
to Main Security News
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