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American Morning
Heightened Security at National Monuments
Aired May 23, 2003 - 07:06 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Memorial Day starts the -- signals the start of the peak summer season to America's national parks and historical landmarks. With the country now on a heightened state of alert, it will not be tourism as usual this holiday weekend.
So then, what steps are being taken to safeguard some of the national monuments?
Phil Sheridan, spokesman for the Independence Hall National Park, is with live in Philly. Good morning to you.
PHIL SHERIDAN, INDEPENDENCE NATIONAL HISTORIC PARK: Good morning, Bill.
Also in Washington, Sergeant Scott Fear with the U.S. Parks Service that overseas the National Mall.
Sergeant, I want to start with you. With the orange alert going out a few days ago, what changes do you see there now in D.C.?
SGT. SCOTT FEAR, U.S. PARKS SERVICE: Well, people are going to see more officers. They're going to see more horse-mounted officers, more motorcycle officers and more officers on foot at the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial. That's what they're mainly going to see is more officers.
We have people tied in with homeland security, the joint operations command center over at Metropolitan Police Department and the JTTF, Joint Terrorism Task Force, that are going to communicate with us and let us know if there are any problems or anything we need to evaluate or change during the day or during the weekend.
HEMMER: Two weeks ago on May 9 there was a headline in "The Washington Post." I'll quote it for you: "It looks like tourism as usual. After the war, security restrictions are relaxed in the nation's capital." Was that the case before the alert was raised?
FEAR: I do believe it was. But also, this weekend, we always have a special detail for Memorial Day weekend. It's a big weekend here in Washington, D.C., and the National Mall is usually fairly crowded. We have the Rolling Thunder demonstration that comes through on the motorcycles.
So, it's always a big weekend for us, and we always have extra officers out here. But this weekend, we'll have additional officers. But we still encourage everyone to come down, to keep the tourism as normal as possible, to be down here and be our eyes and ears also to help us.
HEMMER: Down in Philly, let's talk with Phil Sheridan yet again here. Metal detectors are installed. What's the reaction from visitors as they see the stepped-up security there?
SHERIDAN: Well, I think visitors like to come to a place where they feel safe. And since the National Parks Service has taken very proactive steps ever since 9/11 to protect these important buildings and our visitors, people do feel good about coming here.
HEMMER: Yes, the Parks Service is absorbing a lot of the costs and a lot of the manpower. How are you handling that now, Phil?
SHERIDAN: Well, for us, because of the security perimeters we have around Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, we have added a good number of law enforcement rangers to our staff, and, of course, that requires more money. So, we've allocated for that and do what we can to keep the buildings and the visitors safe.
HEMMER: Do you think you're getting the money you need?
SHERIDAN: I think we've done very well so far in terms of getting the law enforcement dollars to protect the buildings, to protect Independence Hall. And I think that the visitors appreciate that and they have shown that by coming back in very good numbers after those very dark days immediately after 9/11.
HEMMER: Keep it safe this weekend, gentlemen. Thanks, Phil Sheridan of Philly, Sergeant Scott Fear in D.C. Thank you both for your time today. Appreciate it.
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 23, 2003 - 07:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Memorial Day starts the -- signals the start of the peak summer season to America's national parks and historical landmarks. With the country now on a heightened state of alert, it will not be tourism as usual this holiday weekend.
So then, what steps are being taken to safeguard some of the national monuments?
Phil Sheridan, spokesman for the Independence Hall National Park, is with live in Philly. Good morning to you.
PHIL SHERIDAN, INDEPENDENCE NATIONAL HISTORIC PARK: Good morning, Bill.
Also in Washington, Sergeant Scott Fear with the U.S. Parks Service that overseas the National Mall.
Sergeant, I want to start with you. With the orange alert going out a few days ago, what changes do you see there now in D.C.?
SGT. SCOTT FEAR, U.S. PARKS SERVICE: Well, people are going to see more officers. They're going to see more horse-mounted officers, more motorcycle officers and more officers on foot at the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial. That's what they're mainly going to see is more officers.
We have people tied in with homeland security, the joint operations command center over at Metropolitan Police Department and the JTTF, Joint Terrorism Task Force, that are going to communicate with us and let us know if there are any problems or anything we need to evaluate or change during the day or during the weekend.
HEMMER: Two weeks ago on May 9 there was a headline in "The Washington Post." I'll quote it for you: "It looks like tourism as usual. After the war, security restrictions are relaxed in the nation's capital." Was that the case before the alert was raised?
FEAR: I do believe it was. But also, this weekend, we always have a special detail for Memorial Day weekend. It's a big weekend here in Washington, D.C., and the National Mall is usually fairly crowded. We have the Rolling Thunder demonstration that comes through on the motorcycles.
So, it's always a big weekend for us, and we always have extra officers out here. But this weekend, we'll have additional officers. But we still encourage everyone to come down, to keep the tourism as normal as possible, to be down here and be our eyes and ears also to help us.
HEMMER: Down in Philly, let's talk with Phil Sheridan yet again here. Metal detectors are installed. What's the reaction from visitors as they see the stepped-up security there?
SHERIDAN: Well, I think visitors like to come to a place where they feel safe. And since the National Parks Service has taken very proactive steps ever since 9/11 to protect these important buildings and our visitors, people do feel good about coming here.
HEMMER: Yes, the Parks Service is absorbing a lot of the costs and a lot of the manpower. How are you handling that now, Phil?
SHERIDAN: Well, for us, because of the security perimeters we have around Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, we have added a good number of law enforcement rangers to our staff, and, of course, that requires more money. So, we've allocated for that and do what we can to keep the buildings and the visitors safe.
HEMMER: Do you think you're getting the money you need?
SHERIDAN: I think we've done very well so far in terms of getting the law enforcement dollars to protect the buildings, to protect Independence Hall. And I think that the visitors appreciate that and they have shown that by coming back in very good numbers after those very dark days immediately after 9/11.
HEMMER: Keep it safe this weekend, gentlemen. Thanks, Phil Sheridan of Philly, Sergeant Scott Fear in D.C. Thank you both for your time today. Appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
