First Observer – Truckers Learn To Watch Out For Terrorists
September 16, 2009 by national
Filed under Homeland Security News
A local truck driving school became the first on the West Coast to be trained for a new federal anti-terrorism program, the school’s owner and the instructor said. Robert Hertan, an instructor from Maryland-based Total Security Services International, Inc., led the three-hour class at Vallejo’s Falcon Truck School recently. He said the federal Transportation Security Administration hired his firm to train transportation professionals for the “First Observer” program.
“This is a Department of Homeland Security program, funded by FEMA and administered by the TSA,” Hertan said.
The heart of the training is to use truckers to keep an eye out for — and report — suspicious behavior that could be part of a terrorist operation or some other attack like that on the state capitol eight years ago.
Timing and convenience combined to make Falcon the first school to get this training, but it’s spreading nationwide, Hertan said. Some trucking and school bus firms have been trained, and though specific results are unavailable, it’s working, he said.
First Observer ™ is a highway security program, funded by FEMA and administered by TSA. Its mission is to promote the security of our critical infrastructure within the United States by training people to observe, assess and report risks and security breaches.
“We wouldn’t be doing it if it wasn’t providing some value,” Hertan said.
“The TSA clearly recognizes the vital role America’s critical infrastructure plays in maintaining and preserving our American way of life and has made protecting that infrastructure a top priority,” according to the program’s literature.
“First Observer engages surface transportation professionals — truck drivers, school bus operators, mass transit workers, port workers and others — in maintaining the safety and security of America’s bridges, tunnels and roads.”
