TSA Should Start Operating Its Cameras
Sancho Panza
Comedy Of Errors: Cameras Didn't Work At Newark
Sources Tell CBS 2 That TSA Surveillance Cameras Were Inoperable At Time Of
Terminal C Security Breach
TSA Apparently Didn't Know Number For Continental To Get Other Footage
CBS News Interactive: Eye On Air Safety
NEWARK (CBS) ?It's a tale of shocking ineptitude: CBS 2 has learned a series
of missteps unnecessarily added to the mayhem at Newark Liberty
International Airport on Sunday. The six-hour delay stranded thousands of
people, creating extreme crowding and chaos.
The mistakes made at the airport give new meaning to the term "domino
effect." It was a cascading series of missteps that cry out for action.
The sign at the Transportation Security Administration screening post at
Newark read: "Premises Under Constant Video Surveillance."
What is should add is: "If We're Lucky."
That's because CBS 2 has learned that when an unidentified man breached a
secure area at Newark on Sunday night, delaying thousands of passengers for
hours, the TSA cameras weren't working.That's right - they weren't even
recording, sources said, and needed a reboot, which the agency apparently
didn't ask for. That set off a chain reaction of even more missteps that
caused needless chaos and inconvenience for several thousand hapless
passengers.
With the cameras inoperable, the TSA tried to get a second set of
surveillance video from Continental Airlines. But the TSA apparently didn't
know the correct telephone number and the specific procedures to get the
footage. That caused a two hour delay in identifying the intruder and
closing the airport to look for him.When they finally got the footage, they
couldn't find the intruder, discovering later that he had slipped out
another entrance 20 minutes after he arrived.
"The question I would ask is should there be an independent camera system
there. Who should be responsible for the law enforcement?" said Sen. Frank
Lautenberg.Lautenberg is furious about what happened and he's going to hold
hearings to demand answers."You cannot afford a mistake here anymore than a
surgeon in the operating room," he said. "This system was broken."
But that's not all. The Edwardes family of Ontario, Canada may have felt the
worst of the domino effect. They were finally flying home on Tuesday after
being stranded since Sunday. For them, a 90 minute layover to change planes
from San Diego to Ontario turned into a two-and-a-half day delay."We were a
minute away from boarding," said Terri Edwardes. "We just want to go home."
The family was left to wait for hours and hours with no water, no food, no
information about whether their plane would take off, and no hotel. So what
did they get from Continental?"They gave us one of these packages with a
toothpaste, and a toothbrush, and hairspray in it. And deodorant," said Jake
Edwardes.
Needless to say, there is a lot of blame, and a lot of finger pointing. But
as of now, if it were to happen again, there's no guarantee it would be
handled smoothly.
DevilsPGD
<otter...@xhotmail.com> was claimed to have wrote:
>With the cameras inoperable, the TSA tried to get a second set of
>surveillance video from Continental Airlines. But the TSA apparently didn't
>know the correct telephone number and the specific procedures to get the
>footage. That caused a two hour delay in identifying the intruder and
>closing the airport to look for him.When they finally got the footage, they
>couldn't find the intruder, discovering later that he had slipped out
>another entrance 20 minutes after he arrived.
In fairness, even if the intruder were identified, everyone would need
to be rescreened anyway, as well as all areas where the intruder
traveled needing to be scanned.
The above assumes security is the focus rather than theatre. That being
said, rescreening everyone makes for good theatre too, so the results
are the same either way.
ja moran
we were just as safe if no more so before this agency was created
a person and a dog trained to sniff out prohibited items is probably
less expensive and more effective than a million dollar whiz bang
machine in the 80's I think flying was safe and fun we need to put the
fun back into air travel..
It's you and my tax money that's being spent and wasted......