http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do? pageID=community_home&articleID=1981625
Saturday, Jul 16, 2005 Terrorism changing the way BC Ferries handles baggage DUNCAN (BC Newspaper Group) The morning of the terrorist attack on the London transportation system, B.C. Ferries had scheduled a technical briefing to explain how one of its vessels had lost power and run aground. It didn't take long for the questions to turn from the innocent omission of a small cotter pin on a bolt to much more complex issues of security. And B.C. Ferries CEO David Hahn was clearly expecting them. Yes, yes" he said impatiently, when asked if his company had been working with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and other national security organizations. We got information right away because our security department is tied into it after 9/11." Experts have noted that if terrorists were looking at the west coast of Canada, the ferry system would be the likeliest target. It's a big, high-volume public system with few restrictions on passenger movement, like the Madrid and London train systems. When the Queen of Oak Bay ran aground at Horseshoe Bay, it had 544 people on board. After seeing how even a tiny mistake can have big consequences, Hahn was feeling the weight of responsibility to take steps to avoid a nightmare scenario. I can tell you that probably this fall we're going to have to re- look at how we treat baggage and how it's handled at B.C. Ferries," Hahn said. Right now there's too much unattended baggage, and I think we're going to have to change that policy. It'll probably put a burden on people who are disabled, it'll be hard for the elderly, children, but I think we're going to be faced with no choice. The events of the world continue to reshape the way transportation companies have to behave." For those who were still hoping Canada could keep its head down, make peaceful noises and avoid the whole terrorism thing, the odds have gotten grim. As of last week, Osama bin Laden's own checklist has only two countries left: Italy and Canada. As much as the federal Liberal government tries to minimize it, Canada had troops and even senior officers on U.S. exchange taking part in the Iraq conflict, and a Canadian frigate attached to U.S. naval forces there. In Afghanistan, where more damage was done to Al Qaeda than anywhere else, Canadian ships, regular and special forces were in it from the beginning. The U.S. army was going to award a medal to a Canadian sniper for making an amazing shot to stop an enemy attacking U.S. troops, but Canada intervened and swept the incident under the rug, so as not to upset voters who prefer the soothing myth of the unarmed peacekeeper. Later that afternoon, I boarded the Queen of Saanich for the trip from Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen. As they weave through scenic Active Pass, passengers are accustomed to hearing announcements about lost glasses and cameras, or the sighting of a pod of killer whales. This time, the mid-voyage announcement was different. A large suitcase had been found unattended and could be claimed at the chief steward's office. That's how vulnerable mass transit is in a new century. -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
