Homeland
Security
Current Nationwide
Threat Level
ELEVATED
Daily Open Source Infrastructure
Report for 13 August 2009
Significant Risk of Terrorist Attacks
For information, click here:
http://www.dhs.gov
Top Stories

KMBC 9 Kansas City reports that firefighters and hazmat teams responded to an anhydrous
hydrochloric acid leak at the Bayer Crop Science plant in Kansas City, Missouri on
Tuesday. About 300 employees of the plant were quarantined for a time in a safe room.
(See item 5)

WPRI 12 Providence reports that the Raytheon plant in Portsmouth, Rhode Island reopened
on Tuesday following a hazmat situation that sent four people, including two firefighters,
to the hospital on Monday. Eight people were decontaminated as a precaution. (See item
11)
Fast Jump Menu
PRODUCTION INDUSTRIES
• Energy
• Chemical
• Nuclear Reactors, Materials and Waste
• Critical Manufacturing
• Defense Industrial Base
• Dams Sector
SUSTENANCE AND HEALTH
• Agriculture and Food
• Water Sector
• Public Health and Healthcare
SERVICE INDUSTRIES
• Banking and Finance
• Transportation
• Postal and Shipping
• Information and Technology
• Communications
• Commercial Facilities
FEDERAL AND STATE
• Government Facilities
• Emergency Services
• National Monuments and Icons
Energy Sector
Current Electricity Sector Threat Alert Levels: Physical: ELEVATED,
Cyber: ELEVATED
Scale: LOW, GUARDED, ELEVATED, HIGH, SEVERE [Source: ISAC for the Electricity Sector (ES-ISAC) [http://www.esisac.com]
1. August 12, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – (Pennsylvania) DEP meetings to discuss Mon
View Mining Co. cleanup. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
(DEP) will hold a public hearing the evening of August 12 to discuss plans to clean up
the closed Mon View Mining Co. deep mine complex in Union and Carroll townships,
-1-
Washington County. The meeting, at 6 p.m. in the Elrama Fire Hall provides a forum
for public comments on DEP’s plans to clean up abandoned materials in Mon View’s
supply yard along Mingo Creek and Route 88 in Carroll; at the coal prep plant along
Route 837, next to the Mitchell Power Plant in Union; and at a coal refuse pile off
Courtney Hill Road in Union. The cleanup, estimated to cost between $150,000 and
$200,000, is necessary because of concerns about leaking containers and electric
transformers that have contaminated soil and ground water, and trespassing and
vandalism that has occurred at the sites. The DEP expects any purchaser of the property
will be required, as a condition of sale, to reimburse the state’s Hazardous Sites
Cleanup Act fund for the cleanup costs. The public comment period will be open until
September 19.
Source: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09224/990167-55.stm
2. August 11, Reuters – (Texas) Alon Big Spring FCC hit by power outage. A brief
power outage struck the 25,000 barrel per day (bpd) gasoline-producing fluidic
catalytic cracking unit at Alon USA Energy Inc’s 67,000 bpd refinery in Big Spring,
Texas on August 11, according to a notice filed with Texas pollution regulators. The
power interruption was caused by a thunderstorm, according to the notice filed with the
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Adjustments were made to maintain
operations.
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssEnergyNews/idUSN1154491720090811
3. August 11, Reuters – (Louisiana) Shell plans Eugene restart in Sept after
repair. Restart of Eugene Island pipeline in the Gulf of Mexico is expected in late
September after repair of a leak is finished, operator Shell Pipeline said on August 11.
“Maintenance is taking place 24/7. We will update the timeline in late August as work
progresses,” a Shell spokesman said. The key Gulf of Mexico supply line was shut
down July 25 after a leak was discovered 33 miles (48 km) off Louisiana near Houma.
An estimated 1,500 barrels of crude leaked and has been cleaned up, the Coast Guard
and Shell have said. At the time, 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil was flowing
through the line. Shell had said it diverted 80,000 bpd of the flow. It disclosed on
August 11 that the diversion was through the Amberjack and Cougar/Whitecap
systems.
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssEnergyNews/idUSN1154435520090811
4. August 11, U.S. Department of Justice – (Ohio) Ohio Edison agrees to repower
power plant with renewable biomass fuel. Ohio Edison Company, a subsidiary of
FirstEnergy Corp., has agreed in a consent decree to repower one of its coal-fired
power plants using primarily renewable biomass fuels, the Justice Department and U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency announced on August 11. In the agreement, filed in
federal court in Columbus, Ohio and joined by the states of New York, New Jersey and
Connecticut, Ohio Edison will repower the R.E. Burger Units 4 and 5 near Shadyside,
Ohio with biomass fuel. The consent decree modifies a 2005 consent decree requiring
Ohio Edison to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) at
several of its coal-fired plants. The modified consent decree will substantially reduce
emissions of SO2 and NOx from Burger’s current levels and also reduce carbon
-2-
dioxide (CO2) emissions from current levels by more than 1.3 million tons a year.
Burger will be the largest coal-fired electric utility plant in the country to repower with
renewable biomass fuels and the first such plant at which greenhouse gas emissions
will be reduced under a Clean Air Act consent decree. As a result of this agreement,
conversion to biomass fuel combustion is expected to approach “carbon neutrality,”
meaning that CO2 emissions released by burning biomass fuel will be offset by the
amount of CO2 absorbed from the atmosphere by the wood and vegetation grown to
produce the fuel. After offset, Burger is expected to emit approximately 400,000 tons
of CO2 emissions a year, based on 20 percent coal co-firing, versus more than 1.7
million tons from coal-fired combustion prior to repowering with biomass fuel.
Source: http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2009/August/09-ag-787.html
For another story, see item 22
[Return to top]
Chemical Industry Sector
5. August 11, KMBC 9 Kansas City – (Missouri) Firefighters called to Bayer Chemical
for leak. Firefighters were called to the Bayer Crop Science plant in Kansas City,
Missouri on August 11 on a chemical leak. An anhydrous hydrochloric acid leak was
detected at about 8:30 a.m., according to a company spokesman. Air monitors were put
in place. Fire crews stayed at the scene until the leak was stopped at 2:15 p.m. KMBC
reported that about 300 employees, who were in the plant at the time of the leak, were
quarantined for a time in a safe room. No injuries were reported. Bayer CropScience
released the following statement: “The leak of anhydrous hydrochloric acid gas from a
cylinder transported by a vendor to the Bayer CropScience site was stopped at 2:15
p.m. through the combined efforts of the Bayer CropScience emergency response team,
Kansas City’s HazMat 71 and the Northland HazMat Team comprised of units from
North Kansas City and South Platte Fire Departments.” The site fence line was being
monitored to make sure none of the anhydrous hydrochloric acid gas had traveled
beyond the immediate site of the leak. This monitoring was being conducted by Bayer
industrial hygienists, Northland HazMat and Kansas City’s HazMat 71.
Source: http://www.kmbc.com/mostpopular/20356390/detail.html
6. August 10, Boston Business Journal – (Massachusetts) Lowell chemical maker settles
environmental complaint. Bradford Industries Inc. has agreed to complete two
comprehensive audits of its environmental practices in a settlement with federal
regulators over alleged violations at the company’s Lowell, Massachusetts,
manufacturing plant. In a complaint filed by the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice August 7, the government claims Bradford, a
maker of polymer coatings, violated 21 Clean Air Act and hazardous waste
requirements at the plant. The violations included failure to monitor and maintain air
pollution-control equipment and improper handling and storage of hazardous waste
generated at the plant. Under the settlement filed with the complaint, Bradford’s
environmental audit will investigate its compliance with environmental laws and
-3-
regulations and reports will be sent to the EPA. The company also will hire a full-time
environmental manager and environmental technicians as well as pay a $75,000
penalty.
Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2009/08/10/daily13.html
[Return to top]
Nuclear Reactors, Materials and Waste Sector
7. August 11, Environment News Service – (Florida) Florida approves first nuclear
power plant in 33 years. The Florida Cabinet Tuesday approved site certification for
Progress Energy Florida’s Levy nuclear power plant, the first nuclear facility approved
in the state since 1976. The governor, attorney general, and chief financial officer,
serving as the Siting Board, unanimously approved Progress Energy Florida’s site
request for construction of a nuclear facility on a 3,105-acre location in Levy County.
The site certification application includes a detailed analysis of the potential
environmental impacts of the proposed plant, which will consist of two 1,100 megawatt
nuclear powered units, and related transmission lines.
Source: http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/aug2009/2009-08-11-091.asp
[Return to top]
Critical Manufacturing Sector
8. August 11, Baltimore Sun – (Maryland) Cement plant to cut mercury emissions. A
cement plant in Carroll County that is one of the state’s top mercury polluters has
agreed to slash its emissions of that highly toxic metal and of harmful particle pollution
as well, state officials announced on August 10. Lehigh Cement Co.’s Union Bridge
plant has voluntarily agreed to reduce its mercury emissions 80 percent by March 2012,
according to the Maryland Department of the Environment. That would be a year
earlier than the plant would have had to make reductions under new federal pollution
regulations proposed earlier this year. Mercury releases from cement kilns are not
currently regulated, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in April proposed
industrywide limits that would take effect in March 2013. Cement industry officials had
complained that EPA’s proposal to slash mercury emissions was “excessively
stringent” and could force U.S. plants to shut down. But the Lehigh plant manager said
his company believes the reductions can be achieved cost-effectively at the Union
Bridge plant. He expects to begin testing later this month on how to keep mercury from
escaping into the air, he said, by injecting carbon into the cement manufacturing
process. Those tests should lead to an 80 percent reduction by 2012, he said. Lehigh
also agreed to pay a $202,500 penalty to settle allegations made by the state that the
plant violated its limits on particle air pollution in 2007. As part of a consent decree
entered in Baltimore City Circuit Court, the company pledged to test and repair its
particle pollution controls. Particle pollution can aggravate asthma and bronchitis,
cause heart and lung problems and even premature death.
-4-
Source: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/carroll/balmd.lehigh11aug11,0,858039.story
[Return to top]
Defense Industrial Base Sector
9. August 12, Knoxville News Sentinel – (Tennessee) New study supports Y-12
production center. A recently completed study by the National Nuclear Security
Administration (NNSA) apparently supports the previous Presidential Administration’s
push to build a new production facility at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak
Ridge. The proposed multibillion-dollar Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) has been a
topic of controversy on multiple fronts, with criticism that the facility was designed too
big for the nation’s future production needs and too expensive to satisfy efforts to
control the spending on nuclear defense. According a July 10 memo from the Oak
Ridge staff of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, a final draft of the report
evaluating options for processing highly enriched uranium was completed and sent to
agency headquarters in Washington. The memo said the report supports moving
forward with UPF, both from a cost standpoint and analysis of safety risks. The NNSA
earlier this year assigned a team to look at various possibilities for processing uranium
and evaluate them against the blueprint for UPF. The study team included experts from
NNSA headquarters, Los Alamos National Lab, Lawrence Livermore National Lab and
Y-12. Among the options considered was upgrading the existing 9212 production
complex, parts of which are more than 50 years old. According to the federal manager
at Y-12, “The analysis confirmed the need to proceed with UPF in a timely manner to
most effectively manage cost, safety and programmatic requirements.” The Oak Ridge
official said the report would be a tool for managers in Washington to make a “riskinformed decision” regarding any potential changes to the UPF project.
Source: http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/aug/12/new-study-supports-y-12production-center/
10. August 11, Nextgov – (National) Final public meeting on combating counterfeit
technology this week. Civilian and defense acquisition councils will host a sixth and
final meeting between industry and government on August 13 to discuss ways to
prevent the sale of counterfeit technology to federal agencies without overburdening
industry with sole responsibility for securing the supply chain. The public-private
discussions were scheduled after criticism that a rule proposed in January placed undue
liability on federal contractors. The collaboration is a good example of how agencies
and contractors can work together to strengthen information security, according to
leading technology lobby group TechAmerica. The General Services Administration,
Defense Department and NASA published a notice in the August 11 Federal Register,
saying the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition
Regulations Council would host a final public meeting “to continue a dialogue with
industry and government agencies about ways to develop greater assurances regarding
the authenticity of IT products acquired by the government.” Reports have surfaced in
recent years of counterfeit IT products that have shown up in government networks,
-5-
creating the possibility that the networks could fail or compromise security. In a 2004
incident reported by Government Executive in September 2008, for example, American
Data and Computer Products Inc. unknowingly sold counterfeit Cisco network switches
to the Navy that were traced back to China.
Source: http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20090811_8386.php?oref=topstory
11. August 11, WPRI 12 Providence – (Rhode Island) Raytheon reopens after chemical
spill. The Raytheon plant on West Main Rd. in Portsmouth reopened on August 11
following a hazmat situation that sent four people, including two firefighters, to the
hospital on August 10. The Portsmouth fire chief confirmed some kind of powdery
cleaning product spilled, sparking concern. Eight people were decontaminated as a
precaution. The building was allowed to reopen after the substance was deemed nonhazardous. Crews from Newport, East Providence, and the Naval Station were called in
to provide mutual aid. They were on scene until about 12:30 a.m.
Source:
http://www.wpri.com/dpp/news/local_wpri_portsmouth_raytheon_reopens_following_
hazmat_situation_20090810_nek
[Return to top]
Banking and Finance Sector
12. August 11, Associated Press – (New York) Ex-lawmaker among 17 in Hamptons
fraud case. Prosecutors on eastern Long Island say a former county lawmaker is
among 17 people charged in an $82 million mortgage fraud investigation. The man was
released on $500,000 bond after pleading not guilty on August 11 to grand larceny,
forgery, conspiracy, and fraud charges. Prosecutors say the frauds involved so-called
“straw buyers” — people who received a fee for agreeing to use their name and credit
information to fraudulently obtain mortgages on dozens of properties. Similar scams
have proliferated around the country, although rarely in such a high-profile location as
Long Island’s Hamptons region.
Source: http://www.newsday.com/ex-lawmaker-among-17-in-hamptons-fraud-case1.1362890
13. August 11, WXYZ 7 Detroit – (Michigan) Suspicious package found, building
evacuated. A suspicious package forced the evacuation of a building in Warren near
Van Dyke and 13 Mile Road. Police investigated the scene and determined the package
was not a threat. The package was under a tree in front of the People’s Credit Union, a
building that is also home to other businesses. Action News spoke with the woman who
noticed the package. She described it as a tin with cellophane around it. She said there
was a note stuck to it with a hand-written message that included the words “Death
Threat.” She went back into the building and told someone to call the police. A few
dozen people were evacuated from the building.
Source: http://www.wxyz.com/mostpopular/story/Suspicious-Package-Found-BuildingEvacuated/brbCSj18KUuEzk5PmXDPDw.cspx
-6-
14. August 11, Digital Transactions News – (National) Big merchants push RBS
Worldpay into end-to-end encryption. The end-to-end encryption train picked up
steam on August 11 when big merchant acquirer RBS WorldPay Inc. said it would use
point-of-sale terminal developer VeriFone Holdings Inc.’s VeriShield Protect
technology. The announcement is significant because RBS WorldPay is the first
acquirer to publicly disclose it is using the system VeriFone unveiled in the spring.
Further, RBS WorldPay’s strategy contrasts sharply with the in-house encryption
approach taken by rival acquirer Heartland Payment Systems Inc. The senior vice
president of market development at Atlanta-based RBS WorldPay tells Digital
Transactions News that the processor was getting “tremendous demand” from Level 1
and Level 2 merchants—the largest and second-largest merchant groups by transaction
volume in payment card industry lingo—for enhanced data security.
Source: http://www.digitaltransactions.net/newsstory.cfm?newsid=2290
15. August 11, KOMO 4 Seattle – (National) Forget e-mail — ‘phishers’ now using cell
text messages. Texting is quickly becoming the method of choice for scammers
looking to scare victims into giving out their passwords, account numbers and other
personal information. The old scam has already conned millions of consumers out of
their personal information. Consumer fraud trackers rank phishing as the 4th most
common form of fraud on the Internet, after lottery scams, Internet auctions, and
Nigerian money scams. Diverting the focus to cell phones increases the chance of
finding new victims who will take the bait. The average consumer who falls for the
scam loses $1,200 when their bank account is taken over by the scammers. Because of
the unemployment situation, phishing scammers are increasingly posing as popular job
search and social networking sites. They will claim to be following up information
from a user’s profile or job application. It is a numbers game. Even if fewer than 1
percent of the targets take the bait, the scammers can drain consumer accounts of
millions of dollars through identity theft.
Source: http://www.komonews.com/news/local/53000402.html
16. August 10, Buffalo News – (National) Nationwide alert issued on ‘payday’ loan
scams. The Better Business Bureau, during the week of August 2, issued a nationwide
alert to consumers to warn them about phony debt collectors that are calling consumers,
claiming that they defaulted on a “payday” loan, and threatening to arrest them
immediately if they do not pay. The nonprofit agency said the scammers claim to be
lawyers with the “Financial Accountability Association” or the “Federal Legislation of
Unsecured Loans,” and possess a “disconcerting amount of personal information about
their potential victims.” No such organization or law exists, but the agency is concerned
not only that consumers may fall victim to such tactics and pay up, but also that it may
indicate a massive data breach has already taken place. The scammers already often
have the victims’ Social Security numbers, old bank account numbers, or driver’s
license numbers, as well as home addresses, employer information and even the names
of personal friends and professional references.
Source: http://www.buffalonews.com/145/story/759466.html
[Return to top]
-7-
Transportation Sector
17. August 11, WWBT 12 Richmond – (Virginia) I-295 near Enon buckles causing traffic
& damage to cars. Heat is the main factor for major backups on 295 near the VarinaEnon Bridge. Concrete in the middle lane buckled, causing the slow down and quite a
bit of damage to cars. On August 10, crews worked to fix a gaping hole in the road. The
damage to several of the cars is extensive — not just flat tires but things like cracked
radiators, oil pans, and axles. The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) says
because the buckling is weather related and for the most part cannot be prevented,
drivers have to go through their own insurance to recoup any damages. “We haven’t
had any sort of precipitation over the last couple of weeks, you have this extreme dry
heat and it goes up to 100 degrees so it’s just a freak accident and we don’t know when
or where that’s gonna happen,” said a VDOT spokesperson. Roads like 295 and 288 are
made of concrete and are more prone to damage when the temperature changes.
Source: http://www.nbc12.com/global/story.asp?s=10881240
18. August 11, WAPT 16 Jackson – (Mississippi) School buses routed away from
dangerous bridges. On August 12, Jackson, Mississippi Public Schools officials are
rerouting buses to make sure they do not cross dangerous bridges. Some of the bridges
are in such bad shape the city is near to closing them to traffic altogether. Jackson City
engineers said the Cedars of Lebanon Bridge needs to be replaced because of rotting
wood and broken support beams. Bridge inspectors call its condition critical. The
bridge has a sufficiency rating of 17.3, on a 100-point scale. Right around the corner
from Cedars of Lebanon, the Manhattan Road Bridge is in worse condition. The
bridge’s pedestrian crossing is already closed. Its sufficiency rating is 14 out of 100.
Five bridges in Jackson, including Cedars of Lebanon and the Manhattan Road Bridge,
are restricted to vehicles weighing 6,000 pounds or less. School buses, which weigh
about 29,000 pounds, are not supposed to cross them. The executive director of
transportation for JPS is accountable for making sure the buses do not cross the bridges.
Since the bridges are inside Jackson’s city limits, the city is accountable for their
maintenance and replacement.
Source: http://www.wapt.com/cnn-news/20356197/detail.html
19. August 11, Aviation Herald – (International) News: EASA intends Airworthiness
Directive on Airbus pitot probes. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)
released a proposal for an Airworthiness Directive requiring that Airbus A330 and
A340 aircraft currently equipped with Thales pitot probes should be equipped with
Goodrich pitot probes on position 1 (Captain) and 3 (Standby) instead, while pitot
probe 2 (first officer) should be upgraded to the enhanced Thales pitot probe type BA
or to the Goodrich pitot probe. The upgrade is to be accomplished within 4 months
after the Airworthiness Directive (AD) becomes effective. No Thales probes type AA
are permitted on any position 4 months after the AD becomes effective, no probes type
BA are permitted on positions 1 and 34 months after the AD becomes effective.This
move comes after new incidents, in which airspeed indications were lost despite the
fact, that the airplane was already equipped with the enhanced Thales pitot probes type
BA. Airbus had already recommended this move on July 31 to all operators. EASA is
-8-
open for consultation on this proposal until September 7, 2009.
Source: http://avherald.com/h?article=41e16482&opt=4865
[Return to top]
Postal and Shipping Sector
Nothing to report
[Return to top]
Agriculture and Food Sector
20. August 11, Associated Press – (Colorado) Colorado sees slowing spread of deadly
cattle STD. The spread of a venereal disease that can cause cows to lose their calves
appears to be slowing in Colorado, and state agriculture officials plan to strengthen
policies to keep it that way. Trichomoniasis, or “trich,” is of particular concern in the
West, where grazing associations and permits for grazing on public land allow cattle to
co-mingle. Dozens of Colorado producers were hit with trich last year. Some 43 cattle
facilities in 18 counties were quarantined so infected bulls would not spread the
sexually transmitted disease. So far this year, 13 facilities in eight counties have been
quarantined, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture. Four counties had
quarantines as of July 30. The disease is not harmful to humans who eat infected cattle.
But for cattle ranchers who depend on their cows for calves, the disease can be
devastating.
Source:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gHM7sA0L36b9n6JONUajWx
IB0Z2AD9A0JKRO4
For another story, see item 42
[Return to top]
Water Sector
21. August 12, WUSA 9 Washington, D.C. – (District of Columbia) Hydrant used in D.C.
fire was mismarked. When a fire engine connected to the hydrant in front of a home
on Chain Bridge Road the night of the fire at the home owned by a former DC school
board president, it was marked with blue plastic. That meant the DC Water and Sewer
Authority (WASA) determined the hydrant can flow more than 1,500 gallons-perminute (gpm) of water. The hydrant, about four-tenths of a mile from the burned out
home, actually flows a little more than 300 gpm. The hydrant is now marked in red,
indicating it is at the lowest tier of a scale rating city hydrants by water flow, instead of
at the highest level. A WASA spokesperson admits this was a case of human error, but
she does not believe it indicates a systemic problem in WASA’s hydrant testing
program. WASA is less than half-way through finding out the flow capabilities of the
-9-
more than 10,000 hydrants across the city. The fire department uses the color codes to
easily determine the best way to get a large amount of water to the scene of a fire. A
preliminary report released by the mayor on August 7 indicates that a pumper hooked
up to the hydrant to find a secondary water supply for firefighters struggling to combat
the July 29 fire. The report does not state the hydrant was wrongly coded. A D.C. A
Fire and EMS Department spokesperson said on August 11 that the wrong coding did
not greatly impact the fighting of the fire.
Source: http://cms.firehouse.com/web/online/News/Hydrant-Used-in-DC-Fire-WasMismarked/46$64922
22. August 12, WYTV 33 Youngstown – (Ohio) Meander oil spill. An Ellsworth Township,
Ohio resident called 911 on August 11 after seeing a large oil spill that had caught fire.
“Crews arriving to battle the blaze quickly doused the fire but faced another challenge,”
according to the Ellsworth fire chief. “We noticed a large amount of oil, crude oil, that
had escaped from the tank and was leaking downhill, into Meander Creek, which runs
into Meander Reservoir.” The chief says he quickly called for extra manpower,
including Mahoning County Hazmat, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District, and the North Jackson Fire Department.
The crews spent several hours setting up dikes, and they were able to contain the spill
before it reached the reservoir. The chief says the oil would have caused major
problems for residents of Mahoning County who depend on Meander for drinking
water. The chief adds that upwards of 10,000 gallons of oil were diffused from the
spill. The fire chief says the situation was an unusual one. He assures that the water
from Meander Reservoir is completely safe for residents to use. Crews will continue
the investigation into what caused the fire.
Source: http://www.wytv.com/content/news/local/story/Meander-OilSpill/wnosMPUhkUqfS3n4r9k3_Q.cspx
23. August 12, Associated Press – (Mississippi) Wastewater plant ups flood
protection. Officials say an upgraded portion of a south Mississippi wastewater
treatment plant will be elevated to protect it from hurricane flooding. The Jackson
County Utility Authority director said the $4.1 million upgrade to the regional
wastewater treatment plant in Escatawpa is on track to be completed by the end of the
year. He said workers are installing two new components that will protect the facility
and boost efficiency for wastewater treatment in the Escatawpa and Moss Point areas in
Jackson County. The upgrades “will help the facility withstand what’s thrown at it,
including treatment load and storms,” he said. The Jackson County Utility Authority
plans to install a new aerobic digestion system, which is the primary component of
wastewater treatment, and a de-watering device to convert portions of the wastewater to
solid waste. The de-watering system will be elevated to avoid hurricane flooding and
damage. Several components on the older systems are being elevated as upgrades are
made.
Source: http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20090812/NEWS/908120345/1001/news
[Return to top]
- 10 -
Public Health and Healthcare Sector
24. August 12, Science Daily – (National) MRSA may accompany hospital patients into
home health settings. Infection with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA) appears relatively common among patients discharged from the hospital into
home health care, according to a report in the August 10/24 issue of Archives of
Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. In addition, about one-fifth of
infected patients may transmit the organism to other people in their households. MRSA
is common in hospitals in most countries, and as the incidence of infection increases
new patterns of spread are emerging, according to background information in the
article. “Thus, in the last decade, community-acquired MRSA strains have caused
hospital outbreaks and sometimes replaced older strains previously responsible for
hospital-acquired MRSA infections,” the authors write. “Conversely, hospital-acquired
MRSA strains can spread outside the health care system.” MRSA was identified in a
total of 191 of the 1,501 patients (12.7 percent) before discharge from the hospital to
home health care. Of the 148 who were followed up, 75 were found to have cleared the
organism within one year. Patients who were more self-sufficient in daily activities
appeared more likely to experience clearance of MRSA.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090810161908.htm
25. August 11, WFSB 3 Hartford – (Connecticut) Wednesday surgeries canceled after
hospital fire. Patients were evacuated from the emergency room of
Lawrence&Memorial Hospital in New London, Connecticut because of a fire late
Tuesday morning. The fire broke out in an underground area outside a three-story
section of the hospital. Officials said the fire was reported in the area adjacent to the
emergency room on the hospital’s north side at about 10 a.m. by an off-duty firefighter,
who was at the hospital visiting his mother on the third floor. All surgeries and
afternoon appointments were canceled at the hospital on Tuesday and patients were
evacuated from the emergency room. Hospital officials said they planned to re-open the
emergency room at midnight, but that all surgeries planned for Wednesday were
canceled. The fire quickly escalated to two alarms. About 60 firefighters worked to
contain and extinguish the fire, which was put out at about 2:10 p.m. A hospital
spokesman said the fire caused the hospital to lose air conditioning, and special cooling
units were being brought in as a precaution.
Source: http://www.wfsb.com/health/20356635/detail.html
26. August 11, Reuters – (National) Harsh second H1N1 wave not inevitable: U.S.
experts. U.S. health officials are gearing up for the return this fall of the H1N1 swine
flu virus that has sparked a global pandemic, but some government scientists say a
second, potentially more severe wave of disease is not inevitable. “Every influenza
pandemic writes its own rules as it progresses,” a doctor at the National Institute of
Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, said in a
telephone interview on Tuesday. Writing in the Journal of the American Medical
Association, he and a colleague said there is not enough evidence to conclude that the
relatively mild spring wave of H1N1 flu is a harbinger of a more severe outbreak. He
said the common belief that severe flu pandemics are preceded by a milder wave of
- 11 -
illness arose because of some accounts of the 1918-1919 “Spanish” flu pandemic that
killed between 40 million and 100 million people. The team analyzed 14 global or
regional flu pandemics during the past 500 years and found past pandemics patterns
vary widely. They said two other flu pandemics in the 20th century – in 1957 and 1968
– made just a single, seasonal appearance, and generally did not become significantly
more serious in the early years of their circulation.
Source:
http://www.reuters.com/article/internal_ReutersNewsRoom_ExclusivesAndWins_MO
LT/idUSTRE57A5ZY20090811
[Return to top]
Government Facilities Sector
27. August 12, KCRA 3 Modesto – (California) Stanislaus Co. courthouse evacuated over
odor. The Stanislaus County Courthouse in Modesto, California, was evacuated
Tuesday morning over a strange odor. Modesto police said there was a report of a
chemical smell on the first floor. The county hazardous materials team is investigating.
The source of the odor was not immediately clear. People were let back into the
courthouse just before noon.
Source: http://www.kcra.com/cnn-news/20359282/detail.html
28. August 12, Tampa Tribune – (Virginia) Vet faces prison for VA bomb threat. A
veteran says he was just “blowing off steam” when he called the Veterans
Administration and threatened to bomb the Bay Pines, Florida, VA Hospital. The man
says he did not mean it when he called a Senator’s office and the V.A. repeatedly and
threatened to “whack” the person the government had appointed to help him handle his
finances. The suspect is facing a possible prison term after pleading guilty to using a
telephone to threaten to blow up a building, a charge which carries a maximum of 10
years behind bars. At the V.A., he gave his name and his claim number, according to
his plea agreement. He called the Senator’s office so often, the people there recognized
his voice. In the calls, he would say he was a former Marine, a trained killer whose
profession was to kill people. He said he would use his sniper skills to shoot his
government-appointed fiduciary with an M16 rifle.
Source: http://www.military.com/news/article/vet-faces-prison-for-va-bombthreat.html?ESRC=topstories.RSS
29. August 12, Spokane Spokesman Review – (Washington) Hanford gets new
timeline. Washington state and federal officials announced a court-enforceable
schedule Tuesday for cleaning up the nation’s most contaminated nuclear site, Hanford
Nuclear Reservation, ending more than two years of negotiations that followed dozens
of missed deadlines. Washington State sued the Energy Department last November
over missed cleanup deadlines, though the two sides settled part of the lawsuit in
February. That agreement accelerated cleanup of contaminated groundwater along the
neighboring Columbia River, among other things, and both sides said it would shrink
the 586-square-mile site to just 75 square miles by 2015. The consent decree that was
- 12 -
filed Tuesday morning with U.S. District Court in Spokane sets new deadlines for the
remaining points of contention: emptying underground waste tanks and building a plant
to treat that waste. The parties also agreed to review the schedule every six years to
examine areas where work could be hastened.
Source: http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/aug/12/hanford-gets-new-timeline/
30. August 11, XETV 6 San Diego – (California) Bomb threat forces evacuation of
Mission Hills High. A bogus bomb threat forced the full evacuation of a North County
secondary school Tuesday, a sheriff’s official reported. A male caller telephoned the
threat to Mission Hills High School in San Marcos, saying an explosive device would
detonate there sometime in the afternoon, a police spokesman. All staffers and students
were cleared from the Mission Hills Court campus. Deputies then searched the school’s
buildings and grounds but found nothing dangerous.
Source: http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/story/Bomb-Threat-Forces-Evacuationof-Mission-Hills/WFEyofHY0U2cVEb82i0LwQ.cspx
[Return to top]
Emergency Services Sector
31. August 12, Washington Times – (National) Disaster plans leave disabled behind. Four
years after Hurricane Katrina exposed major deficiencies in the capacity of
governments to evacuate and care for the disabled during a natural disaster, America’s
most vulnerable citizens are barely considered in most emergency plans, according to a
report being issued Wednesday by the National Council on Disability. The report says
huge gaps exist in those emergency plans despite an executive order issued in 2004
urging federal and local governments, as well as private organizations, to consider the
unique needs of the disabled when planning rescues and preparing to provide
emergency shelter. The 500-page report also criticized government disaster planners for
failing to seek input about the needs of the disabled from the community and its
advocacy groups. Among other problems the report cited were issues involving service
dogs, relocation in trailers and mobile homes, the effectiveness of various warning
systems and different transportation needs. The independent federal agency’s report,
titled “Effective Emergency Management: Making Improvements for Communities and
People With Disabilities,” said the exclusion of issues affecting the disabled from
disaster planning is a long-standing problem and that the details “have typically been
limited to a few lines in an emergency plan, if they are mentioned at all.”
Source: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/aug/12/disaster-plans-leavedisabled-behind/
32. August 10, KSWB 5 San Diego – (National) Border Patrol wants fleet of high-tech
patrol boats. U.S. border agents may soon have faster boats with long-range infrared
cameras to find smugglers ferrying people and drugs into the country from Mexico.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection showed off a prototype vessel Monday in San
Diego. Officials said the new boat will aid agents during high-speed pursuits. The
$875,000 speedboat is faster, more stable and carries more fuel than the agency’s
- 13 -
current craft. It is powered by four 350 horsepower outboard engines which propel it at
about 75 miles per hour. The boats currently used by CBP are powered by four 230
horsepower engines. It also comes with infrared cameras that give detailed images of
other vessels miles away at night. Currently, agents often use night vision goggles,
which can see only as far as the naked eye. A CBP Agent said the enhanced
surveillance capabilities will make agents more effective at detecting smugglers and
better prepared when they intercept them at sea.
Source: http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-new-border-boat,0,7134131.story
[Return to top]
Information Technology Sector
33. August 12, ZDNet – (International) Apple plugs code execution, phishing holes in
Safari browser. Apple has released Safari 4.0.3 to fix at least six security
vulnerabilities that put Mac and Windows users at risk of hacker attacks. The update is
considered highly-critical and should be immediately applied on both Windows and
Mac systems because of the risk of information disclosure, phishing and remote code
execution attacks. The new browser version is available via the Apple Software Update
application or Apple’s Safari download site.
Source: http://blogs.zdnet.com/security/?p=4034
34. August 12, iTWire – (International) Remote code vulnerability in programs built
with Visual Studio. This week, Microsoft pushed out a regular assortment of Windows
updates. One in particular was an important security update for Visual Studio, which is
Microsoft’s primary software development environment. It is used to write computer
programs in languages like C++, C#, Visual Basic.NET and others. While it is not
uncommon to learn of exploitable vulnerabilities in mail and web servers or other
products that are generally exposed to the Internet – like web browsers – it is definitely
not common to be told users are putting their systems at risk by running a development
environment. The update addresses Microsoft security bulletin MS09-035 with a threat
risk of moderate. It turns out the offending portion is not actually Visual Studio itself –
merely firing up Visual Studio has not become a risky proposition. The real problem is
worse. The vulnerability is within the Active Template Library (ATL) which is a
redistributable package accompanying Visual Studio versions from 2003 through 2005
and 2008. Programs built within Visual Studio that make use of ATL functionality are
all infected with the flaw. Like a river, these programs have been distributed out to
computers worldwide. Consequently, while the update is labelled as being for Visual
Studio, the vulnerability exists in legions of “CorporateApp1” style programs on
desktops. Fortunately, the update may be applied to any Windows-based computer
irrespective of whether Visual Studio is installed or not. Enterprise administrators or
home users may wish to install this update manually or via using the Microsoft Update
service.
Source: http://www.itwire.com/content/view/26909/53/
- 14 -
35. August 12, Tech Herald – (International) Twitter knocked offline once again. Already
hit by an untimely service outage after a sudden Denial-of-Service (DoS) attack pulled
it offline, hugely popular micro-blogging site Twitter has once again fallen off the grid
after being targeted by another attack. The source of the new attack, which resulted in a
service outage of around 30 minutes, is presently unknown but Twitter has said in a
blog post that it is “analyzing the traffic data to determine the nature of this attack.”
Speaking with AFP earlier this week, a Twitter co-founder said the site was in the
process of recovering from the initial DoS attack that crippled the service for around
two hours and similarly affected other networking services such as Facebook, Blogger
and LiveJournal. The original attack is believed to have been targeted against social
networking accounts held by Georgian blogger ‘Cyxymu’ who is known for penning
contentious opinions regarding the violent struggle between Russia and breakaway
state Georgia.
Source: http://www.thetechherald.com/article.php/200933/4234/Twitter-knockedoffline-once-again
36. August 11, IDG News Service – (Washington) Seattle man used Limewire for
identity theft. A Seattle man was sentenced to more than three years in prison Tuesday
for using the Limewire file-sharing service to lift personal information from computers
across the U.S. The case highlights a type of identity theft that is probably more
common than most people realize, said the assistant U.S. attorney in the Computer
Hacking and Internet Crimes Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The man typed words
like “tax return” and “account” into the Limewire search box, the assistant U.S.
attorney said. That allowed him to find and access computers on the Limewire network
with shared folders that contained tax returns and bank account information. He also
searched specifically for forms that parents fill out to apply for college financial aid for
their children, which include “exhaustive personal and financial information about the
family,” she said. He used the information to open accounts, create identification cards
and make purchases. He was sentenced Tuesday to 39 months in prison and three years
of supervised release for wire fraud, accessing a protected computer without
authorization to commit fraud, and aggravated identity theft. He was tried in the U.S.
District Court for the Western District of Washington.
Source:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/170056/seattle_man_used_limewire_for_identity_theft
.html
37. August 11, PC World – (International) ActiveX overhaul in Microsoft patch
batch. Microsoft’s nine security bulletins released Tuesday close a range of security
holes involving ActiveX controls, Windows Media files and other software that affect
the full array of Windows versions. A fix for a serious flaw in the Microsoft Office
Web components, disclosed in July, patches an ActiveX problem that allows for a
drive-by-download attack against Internet Explorer users. As per usual, a user will get
all these fixes by running Automatic Updates or manually running Microsoft Update.
Doing so will also nab this month’s collection of less serious fixes. Attacks against
these important-rated holes could result in denial-of-service, privilege escalation and/or
login credential theft – nothing a user would want to deal with, but less dangerous than
- 15 -
the critical risks that could by themselves allow for malware installation and the like.
Source:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/170025/activex_overhaul_in_microsoft_patch_batch.h
tml
Internet Alert Dashboard
To report cyber infrastructure incidents or to request information, please contact US-CERT at sos@us-cert.gov or
visit their Website: http://www.us-cert.gov.
Information on IT information sharing and analysis can be found at the IT ISAC (Information Sharing and
Analysis Center) Website: https://www.it-isac.org/.
[Return to top]
Communications Sector
38. August 12, Computerworld – (International) Asian undersea cable disruption slows
Internet access. A segment of the Asia-Pacific Cable Network 2 (APCN2) undersea
cable network between China and Taiwan suffered a serious cable fault on Wednesday,
causing Internet traffic to be rerouted onto other undersea cables and slowing Internet
access for some users in Southeast Asia. At about 10:50 a.m. on Wednesday, an alarm
signaled a cable fault on Segment 7 of APCN2, which connects Hong Kong and
Shantou, China. The disruption caused a temporary loss of service on the undersea link
but all customers that use the cable were soon shifted to capacity on other cables,
according to a source familiar with the situation. The APCN2 cable is owned by a
consortium of 26 telecom operators from 14 different countries. The cable links
Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, South Korea and
Japan.The exact cause of the APCN2 fault was not immediately known.
Source:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9136558/Asian_undersea_cable_disruption_sl
ows_Internet_access?taxonomyId=1
[Return to top]
Commercial Facilities Sector
39. August 12, Salisbury Daily Times – (Maryland) Authorities order OCMD hotel
closed after gas leak. Authorities shut down an Ocean City, Maryland boardwalk hotel
Tuesday as a result of a carbon monoxide leak that evacuated the building and sent two
people to the hospital. No carbon monoxide detector sniffed out the leak, fire officials
said, because detecting devices were not installed in the building – despite a town law
that requires them. Resort dispatchers got a call for sick persons at the Americana Hotel
at 9:20 a.m. Fire department personnel detected high levels of carbon monoxide
throughout the building and immediately evacuated the hotel. As of Tuesday afternoon,
public occupancy of the Americana was prohibited by the Fire Marshal’s Office and
- 16 -
Ocean City’s building inspector pending completion of the investigation and a review
by a third-party mechanical inspector, according to fire department spokesman.
Source:
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090812/NEWS/90812007/Authorities+order
+OCMD+hotel+closed+after+gas+leak
40. August 11, KVIA 7 El Paso – (Texas) Inspections not required at festival events. The
San Lorenzo Festival took a turn for the worst Sunday after seven people were injured
as a result of a propane tank explosion, according to officials with the El Paso County
Sheriff’s Office. The incident happened just after 2 p.m. Sunday at the San Lorenzo
Church. According to investigators, a booth on church grounds caught fire after the
explosion and an 18-year-old woman sustained severe burns to 36 percent of her body.
Fire investigators said two boys, ages 13 and 15, and a 46-year-old woman also
suffered severe burns. The booth, which was serving food and drinks, was being
operated by the El Paso County 4H Club, a Cub Scout Organization, officials with the
sheriff’s office said. An investigation revealed a grease trap overflowed, sparking a
flash-fire. The president of El Paso County Emergency Services District 2 says no
safety inspection was requested by Clint before the church festival. He added
inspections are not required under Clint municipal code.
Source: http://www.kvia.com/Global/story.asp?S=10877169&nav=AbC0
41. August 11, Oakland Tribune – (California) Oakland hills fire quickly contained. Fire
agencies from Oakland, the California Department of Forestry and the East Bay
Regional Park District threw heavy resources, including helicopters and water tank
wagons, at a grass fire inside Redwood Regional Park on Tuesday afternoon. Oakland
responded to the two-alarm fire at 3:47 p.m., sending about six fire trucks to the area of
Redwood and Pinehurst roads. The fire was contained to about half an acre about 5
p.m. Redwood Regional Park is a popular destination in the hills above Oakland. The
origin of the fire is under investigation.
Source: http://www.insidebayarea.com/localnews/ci_13039928
42. August 8, Bangor Daily News – (Maine) Source of smell at motel eludes hazmat
testing. The acrid smell that sickened Howard Johnson Inn guests and the firefighters
who responded the night of August 6 to evacuate the building dissipated overnight and
its source remains unknown, an assistant fire chief said. The Odlin Road motel and
adjacent restaurant reopened at about 9 a.m. on August 7. “Orono hazmat has literally
done every test known to man to identify what was going on,” but to no avail, the
assistant fire chief said. Six people, including four firefighters, were exposed to the
unknown substance and were hospitalized, he said. Approximately two hours later, “we
had four firefighters that were taken to St. Joseph Hospital with the same symptoms as
the two civilians,” he added. “They were kept for about three hours and were let go.
“Everyone is OK at this point,” he said. The unidentified airborne substance caused
respiratory and throat problems that included a hacking cough. Maine Department of
Environmental Protection personnel also were called to the scene. When the evacuation
occurred, 38 of the motel’s 58 rooms were occupied and all of the guests, estimated at
- 17 -
100, were placed in nearby motel rooms.
Source: http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/115034.html
For another story, see item 13
[Return to top]
National Monuments and Icons Sector
43. August 11, Middletown Journal – (Ohio) Weapons stolen during monument breakin. A brazen thief showed little respect for the founders and veterans of Butler County,
Ohio when he broke in and stole money and historical weaponry from the Soldiers,
Sailors and Pioneers Monument. The break-in between August 1 and 5 and was
captured on a security video. Police released the video Tuesday in hopes that someone
will come forward to identify the thief. The unidentified suspect stole an unknown
amount of money and at least two Civil War era swords, two rifles and a model of a
1928 Thompson sub-machine gun, according to police records. The swords were later
recovered in the bushes behind the monument close to where the suspect broke a
window to gain entry, said a Hamilton police spokesman. One of the rifles was taken
from a pioneer statue that stands near the front entrance, the curator and manager said.
Source: http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/crime/weapons-stolen-duringmonument-break-in-244227.html
[Return to top]
Dams Sector
44. August 12, Augusta Metro Spirit – (Georgia) Dam struggle. The longer the stalemate
over the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam is allowed to continue, the more the
already faltering lock and dam deteriorates. And the more it deteriorates, the greater the
chance of a catastrophic dam failure that would leave the Augusta-area businesses that
rely on the river high and dry. According to a Corps of Engineers spokesman, the lock
and dam, completed in 1937, has outlived its usefulness and plays no part in the Corps’
plan for the Savannah River. Consequently, he says, the Corps has ceased maintaining
the river, including the lock and dam. In order to preserve the pool formed by the dam,
a consortium of local municipalities headed by North Augusta agreed to take over the
dam, but only after the Corps brought it up to standards, which is something it shows
no sign of doing. “Until we can bring it up to full standards, the communities have
indicated that they won’t accept title of it,” he says, “and there’s no funding for it now.”
Should the dam fail, businesses that have intakes on the pool would go high and dry,
and even if they eventually drop the intakes down to the newer, lower level, the
shallower water they would pull from would be dirtier and therefore would require
either extensive treatment or would be potentially unusable.
Source:
http://metrospirit.com/index.php?cat=1990310070813675&ShowArticle_ID=11011108
094252673
- 18 -
45. August 11, Thibodaux Daily Comet – (Louisiana) Dularge levee repairs move
forward ten months after hurricanes. Nearly ten months after Hurricane Ike, work is
finally moving forward to repair scouring and holes left in the battered lower Dularge
levee. The levee board voted August 10 to accept a low bid of $475,000 to take on the
repairs. Once the federal agency paying for the repairs approves the bid, the project will
take 45 days to complete, said the Terrebonne Levee district manager. That means midOctober, at the earliest. The levee protecting lower Dularge is about seven feet tall, and
levee officials found areas that had been washed out to less than four feet during an
inspection tour earlier this month. The project will only make repairs to the damage
caused by Hurricane Ike, the district manager said. The levee district would have to use
their own money to pay for any efforts to raise the levee. In the mean time, the parish is
making back-up plans to bolster the levee with Hesco baskets, which can be filled with
sand and stacked to create interim protection. Levees there were overtopped and
damaged by storm surge in mid-September, and emergency work to repair the levee
stalled over ten months while levee officials worked through the federal emergency
grant process.
Source:
http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20090811/HURBLOG/908119912/1223?Title=Dul
arge-levee-repairs-move-forward-ten-months-after-hurricanes
[Return to top]
- 19 -
DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Report Contact Information
About the reports - The DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Report is a daily [Monday through Friday]
summary of open-source published information concerning significant critical infrastructure issues. The DHS Daily
Open Source Infrastructure Report is archived for ten days on the Department of Homeland Security Website:
http://www.dhs.gov/iaipdailyreport
Contact Information
Content and Suggestions:
Send mail to NICCReports@dhs.gov or contact the DHS Daily
Report Team at (202) 312-3421
Subscribe to the Distribution List:
Visit the DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Report and follow
instructions to Get e-mail updates when this information changes.
Removal from Distribution List:
Send mail to support@govdelivery.com.
Contact DHS
To report physical infrastructure incidents or to request information, please contact the National Infrastructure
Coordinating Center at nicc@dhs.gov or (202) 282-9201.
To report cyber infrastructure incidents or to request information, please contact US-CERT at soc@us-cert.gov or visit
their Web page at www.us-cert.gov.
Department of Homeland Security Disclaimer
The DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Report is a non-commercial publication intended to educate and inform
personnel engaged in infrastructure protection. Further reproduction or redistribution is subject to original copyright
restrictions. DHS provides no warranty of ownership of the copyright, or accuracy with respect to the original source
material.
- 20 -