Nation’s Capitol Increases Security Measures
By Bill Yelenak
WASHINGTON – Security around the Capitol and the District of Columbia has intensified since the national terror alert was raised to high and the United States began military action in Iraq.
According to Capitol Police spokeswoman Jessica Gissubel, Capitol Police officers increased their visibility this week, with some who were previously stationed in vehicles now “more visible to the public eye.”
At the same time, Gissubel said, Capitol Police officers continue to carry Heckler and Koch G-36 and MP-5 assault rifles in addition to the standard-issue Glock-22 handguns.
She was unable to say how many police officers normally work during a given week or how many were working this week. But, she said, shift hours remain the same.
Brian Schubert, press secretary to U.S. Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-5), said that there was a “stepped-up Capitol Police presence” but that he did not find the addition of more Capitol police with new weapons intimidating, but instead found it comforting.
“They are absolutely a reassuring presence for members of Congress, staff and visitors, Schubert said. “They’re doing a great job, and we certainly appreciate the sacrifices they’re making and the long hours they’re putting in to keeping us safe.”
Schubert said it was “unusual” to see Capitol Police with such large weapons but said it was calming to know “the Capitol Police are covering all their bases and making sure that visitors and those of us who work down here are as safe as possible.”
Gissubel also said the police force had begun to do “random deployments” of its Containment Emergency Response Team (CERT) and its K-9 team, which uses dogs to search for bombs and for search and rescue missions. She said the Capitol Police were randomly changing their safety measures and movement patterns in an effort to keep terrorists unsure of locations.
“We do realize that terrorists look for soft targets, and we want to change that,” Gissubel said. “We also know that if they were to plan an attack, they go, they plan it and then, before they actually carry it out, they come back and see that everything stayed the same.”
Schubert said the members of Johnson’s office have been planning the actions they would take if the Capitol and its office buildings needed to be evacuated. He added that the office has received safety “hoods” that would be used in the event of a chemical attack.
“Our office, as I’m assuming every office on the Hill, has constantly been reviewing our emergency procedures in the event we are asked to evacuate or there is an emergency,” Schubert said. “Staff, interns and visitors will be taken care of and shuttled away from the Capitol area as fast as possible. We’ve been pretty meticulous about it – this is too important a situation not to have covered our bases fully.”
New Britain native Susan Emeagwali, the online news editor for the Association for Career and Technical Education based in Alexandria, Va., said she was on Capitol Hill on Wednesday and did not think there had been many recent changes in security.
“When I was up there yesterday, there weren’t really any visible changes, per se,” Emeagwali said. “I think the security measures are a bit more subtle.”
In addition to the intensified security procedures on Capitol Hill, other District locations have been increasing their security measures as well. The Secret Service announced on Tuesday that the security perimeter at the White House has been extended so that pedestrians must stay further away from the presidential residence. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which operates to subway and bus system in Washington, posted on its Website that customers “should not be alarmed to see Metro officers with additional weaponry or accompanied by a K-9.”
And while security may be increasing, Victoria Isley, the vice president of marketing and communications for the Washington Convention and Tourism Corporation, said tourism is not suffering because of the war abroad.
“Our barometer for performance is hotel occupancy, and last week our hotel occupancy was 76 percent,” Isley said, outpacing the national average. “We’ve had just as many calls from people just wanting to know exactly what the condition is here in Washington, DC, what is open, and what, if any, restrictions there are on travel.”
Isley added that major events will take place in the nation’s capitol beginning this weekend with the National Cherry Blossom Festival and continuing next week with the 2003 World Figure Skating Championships.
However, the Washington Marathon, scheduled for Saturday, has been postponed “due to security issues,” according to the event’s Website. The participants’ entry fees are not going to be refunded but they will automatically be entered into next year’s race, scheduled for March 21, 2004.
Schubert said he wouldn’t tell constituents whether they should come to the nation’s capitol, saying, “That’s a decision individuals would have to make for themselves.”
“I would say it’s as safe down here now as it ever is,” he said. “I feel safe down here and I know many of my colleagues do.”
Bill Yelenak, a Boston University student, works at the Boston University Washington News Service in Washington, D.C. His telephone number is 202-756-2860 ext: 114 and his email is byelenak@newbritainherald.com.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
