Emergency Preparedness On 9/11

Rudy Giuliani says he improved how New York City's Police and Fire Departments were run and bolstered the city's emergency preparedness. But in reality, the Giuliani administration was incompetent. His choices caused significant problems and loss-of-life on 9-11.

The 1993 World Trade Center bombing highlighted problems with the Fire Department's radio system. While new radios were issued to the FDNY earlier in 2001, the radios had problems, so the old radios were re-issued.

Lack of training and planning took its toll on September 11, 2001. There was a disorganized response, with the NYPD and FDNY setting up command posts in separate locations, and Rudy did nothing to change the situation despite seeing the it first hand. The two agencies' radio systems were not interoperable. The 911 operators continued telling people to stay inside the towers despite both the Fire and Police Departments ordering evacuations.

Giuliani created the City's Emergency Operations Center. The location he chose for this high-tech communications hub, the 23rd floor of 7 World Trade Center, had several major problems:

  • The World Trade Center was a significant terrorist target. It was bombed in 1993 and various threats against it continued to be made.
  • While the building having backup generators was a plus, it required large quantities of diesel fuel to be at the bottom of the building.
  • The City spent $13 million on the project despite not owning the space.

So when the terrorist attacks happened on 9/11/2001, exactly the type of situation the Emergency Operations Center was built for, it could not be used safely because it was right across the street from the WTC's north tower. In fact, 7 WTC eventually collapsed due to damage and a fire caused when the north tower fell.

Further Reading