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CNN Live Today

Terror Takes the Field

Aired May 21, 2003 - 11:31   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: An attack on a sports stadium could cause massive casualties, all on live television as well. So are authorities ready for that kind of scenario? They're finding out today with a terror drill at the home of the Dolphins and the Marlins.
Our Susan Candiotti is there. She's outside Pro Player Stadium this morning to give us a look at what's going on.

Good morning, Susan.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Leon. The timing of this, by the way, is purely coincidental coming one day after the elevated alert. We're outside Pro Player Stadium, as you said.

And the scenario they've set up here this day by the Department of Homeland Security is that you've got a Marlins versus Atlanta Braves baseball game going on, seventh inning. The Marlins hit a home run, 7,000 people inside those stands stand up to cheer, and someone releases a bottle with an unknown chemical agent inside. We heard a huge explosion when this went off. There is panic, people don't know what it is, and they start to run outside. You have emergency rescue personnel here, 2,500 police and fire, 800 observers, another 1,000 people posing as victims.

Joining us now from the FBI is Frank Figliuzzi.

You head up the terrorism squad. You've got, for the first time here, half of your squad, the SWAT team, is trained to work in hazmat suits. Why is this going to be difficult?

FRANK FIGLIUZZI, FBI: Not only is this the largest exercise in Florida history, but it's the first time FBI Miami SWAT will be fully deploying in these kinds of temperatures in full hazmat protection gear, and we'll get a real sense of how we're going to operate as a SWAT in a hazmat environment.

CANDIOTTI: Thanks, Frank.

Now joining us also, Bud Marshal from the Department of Homeland Security. Now because you already have hundreds and hundreds of rescue people already here on site ready to respond, how do you really get a sense of how quickly they could get here if a disaster happened?

BUD MARSHAL, DEP. OF HOMELAND SECURITY: That wasn't one of the objectives of this exercise. They already have some prestaged apparatus in place because of the game itself. What we're testing is the coordination and communication, and the cooperation of multiple agencies, both the local, state, as well as federal agencies.

CANDIOTTI: Thanks very much for joining us. Let me give you a real quick look here. You see that spray, obviously, when the kids would run out here, were posing as victims. That's where they would cleanse themselves before they were treated by emergency rescue personnel. So again, they expect that mistakes will be made, but that's the point of this exercise, to learn from those mistakes.

Back to you, Leon.

HARRIS: All right, good deal. Thank you, Susan. Susan Candiotti there in Miami.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired May 21, 2003 - 11:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: An attack on a sports stadium could cause massive casualties, all on live television as well. So are authorities ready for that kind of scenario? They're finding out today with a terror drill at the home of the Dolphins and the Marlins.
Our Susan Candiotti is there. She's outside Pro Player Stadium this morning to give us a look at what's going on.

Good morning, Susan.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Leon. The timing of this, by the way, is purely coincidental coming one day after the elevated alert. We're outside Pro Player Stadium, as you said.

And the scenario they've set up here this day by the Department of Homeland Security is that you've got a Marlins versus Atlanta Braves baseball game going on, seventh inning. The Marlins hit a home run, 7,000 people inside those stands stand up to cheer, and someone releases a bottle with an unknown chemical agent inside. We heard a huge explosion when this went off. There is panic, people don't know what it is, and they start to run outside. You have emergency rescue personnel here, 2,500 police and fire, 800 observers, another 1,000 people posing as victims.

Joining us now from the FBI is Frank Figliuzzi.

You head up the terrorism squad. You've got, for the first time here, half of your squad, the SWAT team, is trained to work in hazmat suits. Why is this going to be difficult?

FRANK FIGLIUZZI, FBI: Not only is this the largest exercise in Florida history, but it's the first time FBI Miami SWAT will be fully deploying in these kinds of temperatures in full hazmat protection gear, and we'll get a real sense of how we're going to operate as a SWAT in a hazmat environment.

CANDIOTTI: Thanks, Frank.

Now joining us also, Bud Marshal from the Department of Homeland Security. Now because you already have hundreds and hundreds of rescue people already here on site ready to respond, how do you really get a sense of how quickly they could get here if a disaster happened?

BUD MARSHAL, DEP. OF HOMELAND SECURITY: That wasn't one of the objectives of this exercise. They already have some prestaged apparatus in place because of the game itself. What we're testing is the coordination and communication, and the cooperation of multiple agencies, both the local, state, as well as federal agencies.

CANDIOTTI: Thanks very much for joining us. Let me give you a real quick look here. You see that spray, obviously, when the kids would run out here, were posing as victims. That's where they would cleanse themselves before they were treated by emergency rescue personnel. So again, they expect that mistakes will be made, but that's the point of this exercise, to learn from those mistakes.

Back to you, Leon.

HARRIS: All right, good deal. Thank you, Susan. Susan Candiotti there in Miami.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com