Conventional security: Coast Guard units unite to protect the nation's political process during conventions in Boston and New York

Coast Guard Magazine, Oct, 2004 by Steve Sapp, Matthew Belson

Shortly after the conclusion of the Republican National Convention in New York City, Tom Ridge, secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, spoke to reporters at the National Press Club Sept. 7, where he commented on the post-9/11 homeland security environment.

"As you can imagine, securing our homeland and protecting our citizens is a huge task," said Ridge. "We must guard thousands of miles of borders, shoreline, highways, railways and waterways. That has required broad-based security protocols, ones that can continue to welcome the free flow of trade and travel, but also keep terrorists out."

Nowhere else was Ridge's statement more evident than in the 1st Coast Guard District this past summer during the Democratic and Republican National Conventions in Boston and New York City.

Numerous federal, state and municipal authorities worked for more than a year to develop two ambitious security plans that ensured an appropriate presence on land, on water and in air for both venues. Their goal was to protect the political process. But those plans were not without challenges.

On land, authorities wrestled with transportation issues: how to effectively secure a venue co-located with a major railway hub--Boston's Fleet Center sits atop Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's North Station whereas New York's Madison Square Garden sits atop Penn Station, which serves tens of thousands of railway commuters daily.

The solution was a virtual lock-down of the venues and their perimeters. Many citizens took vacations instead of passing through the security gauntlet en route their workplaces.

On water, the New York and Boston captains of the port similarly wrestled with the prospect of deterring waterborne terrorist attack while simultaneously ensuring the continued free flow of commerce in two of the nation's busiest commercial ports. However, unlike the land solution, locking down the ports was not a practical option.

Another daunting operational handicap present during any large-scale multi-agency operation is the ability of all agencies to communicate easily and quickly with each other. Lessons learned from 9/11 have encouraged first responder agencies to integrate training and operations and develop enhanced communications capabilities.

"The need for seamless communications among all forces continues to be an area for improvement," said Capt. Glenn Wiltshire, commanding officer of Activities New York and captain of the port of New York and New Jersey. "However, because the Coast Guard works so closely with most of these agencies on a daily basis in New York, we were able to minimize any problems."

Maritime Domain Awareness can be difficult to manage in a port area as large as the Port of New York and New Jersey. The Vessel Traffic Center, which has long been used as an advisory system for commercial vessel masters, has since 9/11 doubled as a surveillance system. Two new technologies deployed for the RNC have enhanced the captain of the port's MDA--the Hawkeye System and Blue Force Tracking--and mitigated gaps in previous capabilities.

Challenges and solutions notwithstanding, Wiltshire said that he, as did Capt. Brian Salerno, captain of the port of Boston, oversaw an aggressive multi-agency deployment of unified waterside security forces that is considered one of the largest Coast Guard operations in recent years. The Coast Guard presence around New York alone was significant.

"As for my own experiences, it reminded me in many respects of the operations we had to pull together in 1989 and 1990 to oversee the cleanup of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska," said Wiltshire. "One of the hallmarks of the Coast Guard is our ability to make optimal use of our multi-mission resources to meet surge demands, and the RNC allowed us the opportunity to demonstrate that."

Wiltshire credited his leading planners, Capt. Mike Moriarty, Cmdr. Peter Sammis, and Lt. Cmdr. Michael Griffin, for managing such a large task while following the guiding principles of "safety, vigilance, flexibility, and teamwork." But planners can also thank Secretary Ridge for eliminating most of the learning curve experienced by any operation of this magnitude.

Weeks before the start of the RNC, Ridge raised the terrorism threat level to orange for the Port of New York and New Jersey. Ferry passengers, recreational boaters and commercial operators already accustomed to a consistent Coast Guard presence since 9/11 noticed an even more obvious increase in small boat patrols of port waterways and security zones, as well as armed Coast Guard tactical security operations officers on passenger ferries.

"The increase in MARSEC level gave us a 'no notice' head start in getting our Incident Management Team in place in advance of the convention," said Wiltshire.

More than 1,300 Coast Guard active, Reserve and Auxiliary personnel served aboard 12 cutters, 48 small boats and 10 auxiliary boats, seven helicopters and two auxiliary aircraft, and staffed 11 command posts in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island. Crews represented many 1st District units and flotillas, two Atlantic Area Maritime Safety and Security Teams and five air stations.