The 14th is the one year anniversary of the blackout
8/11/2004, 10:53 a.m. ET
The Associated Press
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Hospitals have tightened security since recent warnings of potential terror attacks, with one area medical center banning deliveries from outside flower shops.
The move comes after state counterterrorism officials warned hospitals they could be targeted by terrorists immediately following an attack, crippling efforts to treat victims.
The warning was communicated through the state Department of Health and Senior Services.
"Hospitals have been asked to improve their security, preparedness, and to test and drill," state Health Commissioner Clifton R. Lacy told The Star-Ledger of Newark.
Saint Michael's Medical Center is only a few blocks from the headquarters of Prudential Financial, one of five locales cited Aug. 1 by federal officials as potential terrorist targets.
"We are definitely making the hospital harder to penetrate," said Mary Danish, corporate director of emergency preparedness for Cathedral Healthcare System. It operates three Newark hospitals, including Saint Michael's, where deliveries from outside flower stores are now banned.
The state Office of Counter-Terrorism also warned ambulance operators earlier this week to guard against suspicious people. The bulletin came after workers at two rescue squads and one emergency room reported fielding strange inquiries.
"These concern us enough to tell the community to be more vigilant regarding ambulances and other emergency vehicles," Sidney Caspersen, head of the Office of Counter-Terrorism told the newspaper. "That means not leaving them unattended and so forth."
All three inquiries — including one by three men "of Middle Eastern appearance" who went to a volunteer ambulance squad headquarters and asked about getting credentials to operate an emergency vehicle — could be perfectly innocent, Caspersen said. Still, he deemed the bulletin necessary.
At Newark's University Hospital, parking is now more restricted and people entering with boxes and packages are being screened.
"We need balance between visitors getting access to patients and securing the building," said Steven Mosser, executive director of hospital support services. "Sometimes it's a difficult balancing act."