Officials Reveal Recommendations To Improve Security At JFK Airport
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) - A team of top security officials has concluded that poor communication between law enforcement agencies contributed to a mass panic at John F. Kennedy International Airport last summer.
Passengers in three terminals at Kennedy Airport ran for the exits on Aug. 14 after cheering at a terminal bar over a Usain Bolt victory at the Olympics somehow led to a false report of gunshots.
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Panic spread when police responded by drawing their weapons.
As CBS2 Political Reporter Marcia Kramer explained, it's rare for Governor Andrew Cuomo, Congressman Peter King, and a top security expert to all say that the incident at Kennedy was a crisis.
"The incident this summer at JFK should have been a real wakeup call," King said.
King, a member of the Homeland Security Committee was simply stunned by the findings of a joint federal-state task force demanding immediate and urgent changes in security at Kennedy airport.
That day as Port Authority cops stormed terminals, passengers panicked, and with little direction from officials spilled onto roadways, and even onto the tarmac. The task force said the overreaction led to group panic.
Airport employees, and security personnel, rather than calming the customers, increased the panic by their response, the report said.
"Their own document is basically saying they are not prepared for a real life event such as what's happened in Europe several times," security expert Manny Gomez said.
The report by a multi-agency review team found that the airport lacks a security protocol that would have helped avoid the chaos.
Governor Cuomo and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson agreed with the recommendations made by the task force including; creating a unified command center to oversee security operations for the entire airport, joint training exercises with the Port Authority Police, NYPD, FDNY, TSA, and customs agents and security contractors, emergency preparedness training for all airport workers including civilians, and a mass self evacuation plan for each terminal.
"The events at JFK were a wake-up call to rethink and reevaluate our security procedures to reflect the new, changing reality of 21st century threats and to better ensure the safety of all New Yorkers," said Cuomo. "These recommendations will serve as a national model to better train our airport workers, establish new protocols to respond to emergencies, and enhance coordination and communication among all stakeholders."
"Implementing these recommendations will enhance safety measures to reflect the current threat environment and will provide necessary training to mitigate panic in the event of an emergency," said Johnson. "The TSA is committed to providing additional training for TSA employees to ensure full coordination with airport authorities and local law enforcement to keep New Yorkers and travelers safe."
Senator Charles Schumer, who got Homeland Security involved int he review called the situation troubling.
"I am deeply troubled that many security loopholes remain at JFK, especially with camera security," he said.
"Why wasn't this done years ago?" Gomez wondered.
Congressman King said he is worried about what lessons the terrorists might take from the incident.
"I am very concerned that based on what happened in August that Al-Qaeda, and ISIS, and other Islamic terrorists saw that, they realized the weakness that was there, and how that can be used to set off a mass panic like that and then carry out an actual attack," King said.
As TV 10/55's Jessica Layton found out, travelers landing at JFK were alarmed to find out about the need for urgent changes at JFK.
"People with bad intentions can easily carry out anything here," one flier said.
"It makes us all insecure, but we can't stop doing what we do," Sandra Dearth added.
One security expert blamed the Port Authority and called the security operation at JFK 'a 19th century technological morass.'
It's unclear how long it will take for changes to be made, and how much they will cost.
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