Critical Infrastructure Vulnerability and Protection
This case assignment examines Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) and intergovernmental
approaches to safeguarding and to responses to natural disasters.
Read pp. 71-75. National Infrastructure Protection Plan (2009).
- A category five hurricane that hit the town of Homer, Kansas knocked out power to homes and
businesses. The telephone lines were also destroyed. To add to the monumental task of locating,
triaging, and securing the safety of citizens, looters have been stealing cooper from the inactive power
lines. Motorists no longer guided by traffic lights, have been negotiating pedestrians and massive debris
in the streets; the town is in chaos.
� Explain the coordinated responses necessary to protect critical infrastructure and key resources
(CIKR). Which agencies would be involved to restore normalcy in the Kansas town? Note: There is no
one answer.
� Read Critical Infrastructure Protection. Also look up remote sensing and GIS on Google.
CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE VULNERABILITY AND PROTECTION 2
- Discuss the combination of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geospatial Information System (GIS) in the
transportation infrastructure protection, and flood risks of major rivers.
Critical Infrastructure Vulnerability and Protection
QUESTION ONE
Infrastructure and the protection of key resources are some of the things that are given
first priorities in disaster situations. These key infrastructure resources are very essential in the
day-to-day running activities of the people, whether in a normal situation or in a disaster. In
order to manage the disaster effectively, a disaster management plan should be in place. This
must include clear communication and information sharing among the groups involved in
restoring normalcy to the people. Lack of proper communication and coordination leads to
difficult in achieving normalcy restoration. In the Kansas, the communication and transport
infrastructure have been interfered with. Looting of the electric cables is very high. There is an
urgent need to protect the cables and enable transport and communication back to normal
operation. These are the most basic factors that lead to the growth of the economy and, therefore,
should be restored as soon as possible.
CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE VULNERABILITY AND PROTECTION 3
The Department of Homeland Security is one of the very basic agencies that are required
in the restoration of normalcy in Homer. This department is responsible for the overall
coordination of the CIKR and the implementation of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan
(NIPP) and the integration of national preparedness initiatives. The Sector-specific Agencies is
responsible for the implementation of NIPP framework and guidance as tailored to the specific
characteristics and risk landscapes of each of the CIKR sectors. The debris that has interrupted
the roads in the town can be addressed by this agency by removing the debris so that
transportation services can be resumed. Boards, Commissions and Councils are responsible for
the oversight of the business operations, policy and regulatory framework adherence by all the
businesses in the world (National infrastructure protection plan, 2009).
The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) and Mobile Emergency
Response Support are the very basic teams that need to be coordinated in order to respond to the
Kansas hurricane. These two teams are designed to respond to the situations by providing
emergency communications services to the people at the Homer town. As stated in the case study
communication lines have been tampered with and therefore effective communication is very
difficult. These two teams can provide the communication services that are required in order to
coordinate the efforts of all those teams involved in restoring normalcy in the area. For instance,
the police communications system has been interfered with, therefore, they cannot be able to
secure the cables form looting by the thieves. In order to coordinate the police and security
efforts they need to communicate and therefore there is a need for emergency communication
service provision by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) and Mobile
Emergency Response Support (Miller, 2007).
CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE VULNERABILITY AND PROTECTION 4
QUESTION TWO
The remote sensing systems are designed to take images of the earth from the space.
These images are taken from space by aircrafts or spacecraft at scales form a few kilometers to
the entire globe. These images can be taken to assess the situation of the ground or the
infrastructure and provide the appropriate systems to the geospatial information system centre.
This information can be availed to the relevant authorities to act on. The remote sensing systems
are set to continuously monitor the situation on the ground. There are designated people who
control this systems and monitor for any signal that may lead to appropriate emergency respond
to specific situation. The interference of the telecommunication and the transport infrastructure
vandalism can be monitored by the use of these remote sensing systems from the space. One of
the advantages of this system is that they allow images of different places to be taken from any
point in the space. When these images have been taken then the information is transmitted
digitally to the control centre. The images can also send signals indicating interference at certain
points along the communication lines or the roads. This information is then sent to the
appropriate authorities who can then respond accordingly in order to safe or respond to the
emergency situation (Behr, 2011).
In monitoring rivers and floods, these systems can be used to provide and monitor the
water levels of rivers. The systems can be set to indicate when the amount of water is at the risk
of flooding. Then the signal is to the information system centre in form of an alarm so that the
system attendees can recognize it as being very urgent. This information is relayed with
immediate effect to the appropriate disaster responding unit who in turn responds to the
emergency in the most appropriate manner.
CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE VULNERABILITY AND PROTECTION 5
Proper coordination and communication is very necessary in disaster management.
Proper implementation and the management of the disaster management plan help the nation
tackle the problems of the infrastructure and communication interference. Information collection
and sharing effectively is very crucial in managing disasters before and after they occur.
References
Behr, P, (2011). Many U.S. nuclear plants ill-prepared to handle simultaneous threats. Scientific
American.
prepared-to-handle-simultaneous-threats
Miller, R. (2007). Hurricane Katrina: Communications and Infrastructure Impacts. US Army
War College.
National infrastructure protection plan (2009). [Read 5.1 A. Coordinated National Approach to
the Homeland Security Mission, pp.71-75].
