This article in today's Denver Rocky Mountain News makes me wonder why horses are important to our national security.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Anti-terror money brought avalanche of new equipment
Area got slammed with gear
By Ann Imse And Todd Hartman, Rocky Mountain News
July 26, 2005
Late last year, the special gear that would help metro-area firefighters and police survive a terrorist attack was arriving so fast that it overloaded Jefferson County's emergency management warehouse.
Staff spent "countless hours" at the warehouse sorting through thousands of masks, suits, air tanks and other protective equipment. Then they divvied up the items among dozens of local agencies.
That scene is reflected in some newly released documents detailing how a 10-county region that includes the metro area has spent $28 million in Homeland Security grants in the past three years.
Earlier this year, the region had to scramble for a new place to park its fifth command vehicle - a $350,000 RV stuffed with radios, computers and other gear - because the receiving agency had no garage for it.
"This should not be a deal killer for the purchase of the fifth unit," an unidentified official wrote.
It wasn't. The region found another place to put it.
The documents didn't say where, but officials have been trying to scatter the specialized vehicles around the region so they can respond quickly to a disaster.
Among other purchases for the metro region:
? An amphibian ATV that can rush officers in and out of an area of a chemical or biological attack.
? 25,000 triage tags to classify victims as to those who can be saved and those who cannot.
? $75,000 for development of a bomb range.
? 2,500 copies of a handbook on responding to a chemical or biological attack, published by Jane's, long known for its detailed reports on the weapons of the world.
? A $200,000 mobile crime lab.
? Training for 700 volunteers to evacuate 10,000 horses in one metro-area county. The name of the county was redacted.
The region did not get funding for refurbishment of a tracked, Vietnam-era military troop carrier/ hazmat vehicle, so it could be used on city streets.
The spending details were the latest Colorado homeland security documents to be reviewed by the Rocky Mountain News since a new state law took effect July 1 that opened portions of records previously off- limits because of security concerns.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Anti-terror money brought avalanche of new equipment
Area got slammed with gear
By Ann Imse And Todd Hartman, Rocky Mountain News
July 26, 2005
Late last year, the special gear that would help metro-area firefighters and police survive a terrorist attack was arriving so fast that it overloaded Jefferson County's emergency management warehouse.
Staff spent "countless hours" at the warehouse sorting through thousands of masks, suits, air tanks and other protective equipment. Then they divvied up the items among dozens of local agencies.
That scene is reflected in some newly released documents detailing how a 10-county region that includes the metro area has spent $28 million in Homeland Security grants in the past three years.
Earlier this year, the region had to scramble for a new place to park its fifth command vehicle - a $350,000 RV stuffed with radios, computers and other gear - because the receiving agency had no garage for it.
"This should not be a deal killer for the purchase of the fifth unit," an unidentified official wrote.
It wasn't. The region found another place to put it.
The documents didn't say where, but officials have been trying to scatter the specialized vehicles around the region so they can respond quickly to a disaster.
Among other purchases for the metro region:
? An amphibian ATV that can rush officers in and out of an area of a chemical or biological attack.
? 25,000 triage tags to classify victims as to those who can be saved and those who cannot.
? $75,000 for development of a bomb range.
? 2,500 copies of a handbook on responding to a chemical or biological attack, published by Jane's, long known for its detailed reports on the weapons of the world.
? A $200,000 mobile crime lab.
? Training for 700 volunteers to evacuate 10,000 horses in one metro-area county. The name of the county was redacted.
The region did not get funding for refurbishment of a tracked, Vietnam-era military troop carrier/ hazmat vehicle, so it could be used on city streets.
The spending details were the latest Colorado homeland security documents to be reviewed by the Rocky Mountain News since a new state law took effect July 1 that opened portions of records previously off- limits because of security concerns.
Facebook
Twitter