In January and February 2022 alone, a total of 67 bomb threats were reported against Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) nationwide. The threats serve as a stark reminder that bombs pose a serious threat to our local communities, as well as to public and private sectors across the United States.

CISA took quick, decisive action to develop strategy and provide support to HBCUs. It worked to intensify training and outreach to protect HBCUs and prepare them to respond to bomb threats. For instance:

• CISA released a Field Operations Instruction directing outreach to HBCUs by field-based Protective Security Advisors (PSAs).
• The PSAs immediately engaged with all HBCU institutions that were initially targeted.
• As of 4 March, PSAs contacted all 101 HBCUs. A total of 55 requested or expressed interest in scheduling additional CISA services.
• CISA OBP has conducted five bomb threat management trainings nationally to more than 938 participants since February 2022.
• On 17 March, CISA OBP leadership testified before the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform about OBP’s response.
• On 19 March, CISA OBP provided bomb threat management training to HBCUs at an event hosted by the Atlanta University Center Consortium, the nation’s oldest and largest consortium of HBCUs. Along with CISA’s Executive Assistant Director for Infrastructure Security Dr. David Mussington and Region 4, CISA OBP discussed the recent wave of bomb threats against HBCUs, along with best practices and resources to attendees, who included HBCU administrators and security personnel nationwide. 

There are significant operational, economic, and psychological impacts due to the attacks. Sheltering in place, evacuations, and facility lock downs all create fear, disruption, uncertainty, and a sense of vulnerability.  

Being better prepared to respond to these threats will go a long way toward mitigating impacts, protecting stakeholders, and creating more resilient communities. CISA OBP’s resources equip stakeholders with the tools to protect their campuses, students, and communities. See our “What to Do: Bomb Threat Resources” webpage for guidance and resources, as they offer in-depth procedures for bomb threats or suspicious items to help you prepare and react appropriately during these events. 

The video describes the wide array of critical resources that CISA OBP offers for free to help members of the public and others effectively respond to bomb threats. This includes CISA-FBI Bomb Threat Guidance that provides site decision-makers with guidelines to react to a bomb threat in an orderly, controlled manner; links to online self-paced trainings; and a range of other CISA OBP videos and products that specify different threat scenarios and best practices for responding to them.

The new CISA OBP video, featuring Associate Director Sean Haglund, also uses case studies to outline the specific steps to properly handle bomb threats.

“Bomb threats are very serious and must be acted upon,” says Haglund. “As our new video highlights, we need the public’s vigilance and active involvement to help protect our communities.”

On January 13, 2022, NBC’s primetime Nightly News with Lester Holt program hosted a TV segment entitled, “Bomb Incidents and Bomb-making Surge in U.S., Officials Warn,” that highlighted the ongoing and growing threat of domestic bomb attacks. Accompanying the on-air broadcast was an online article touching on the same topic that was released days prior. The pieces examined Operation Flashpoint, an effort led by CISA OBP in collaboration with the FBI to encourage businesses to report suspicious purchases of materials that could be used to build bombs.

Narrating over footage of the Nashville Christmas bombing of 2020, the host explained that the cumulative bombing incidents of 2020 equated to a 71% increase from the previous year. CISA’s Executive Assistant Director for Infrastructure Security, Dr. David Mussington, noted that in his professional career, the number of bombing incidents is “the highest it’s ever been... These are risks to the American people and to critical infrastructure.”

NBC National Security Correspondent Ken Dilanian traveled with CISA and FBI representatives to the latter’s Explosive Training Range in Quantico, Va., to get a firsthand look at the dangers of explosive precursor chemicals and learn more about Operation Flashpoint.

Chuck Leas, Section Chief for OBP’s Bomb-Making Materials Awareness Program, which oversees Operation Flashpoint for CISA, showed Dilanian what business owners should specifically look for, such as large quantities of fertilizer. Lisa Parnpichate Special Agent with the FBI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate and Leas’ counterpart on this initiative, indicated that over 250,000 private businesses nationwide sell products containing precursor chemicals used to build explosives.

Many bombing incidents each year are not related to terrorism, but rather are crimes like thieves trying to open an ATM. However, incidents of bomb-related domestic terrorism are still rising, which is why these private partnerships are key to expanding the government’s ability to neutralize and mitigate these threats.

The typical Nightly News with Lester Holt program reaches roughly 8 million people nationwide each evening. You can find and share the NBC News video and written article by clicking here.

CISA OBP will lead the counterterrorism track for the 2022 National Homeland Security Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 11–14.

The National Homeland Security Conference brings together professionals in homeland security, law enforcement, fire, and emergency management. It offers officials in federal agencies, nonprofit agencies, business owners, universities, decision makers, and others an outstanding opportunity to learn about emerging trends in homeland security and see the new equipment and technology available to support their mission.

This Quarter’s Highlighted Training 

CISA OBP achieved the National Certification Program Seal of Excellence from the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST) for its Response to Suspicious Behaviors and Items for Bombing Prevention (AWR-335) course. This is the first of several CISA OBP courses that will be recognized under the IADLEST National Certification Program during this year.

IADLEST is an international association, in partnership with Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) organizations around the nation, with a mission to eliminate many of the problems associated with a lack of standardization within criminal justice training. The IADLEST National Certification Program (NCP) establishes minimum standards for vendors providing law enforcement continuing education and ensures the training content meets those quality standards. The standards are designed to meet or exceed any individual state certification requirements, ensuring national certified training is accepted by all participating POST organizations for in-service or advanced training credit.

IADLEST certification of CISA’s OBP Training Program provides 6,500 key law enforcement leaders, 900,000 police and correctional officers, and 664 law enforcement training academies in all 50 states direct access to critical counter-IED training, attaining the highest standards for law enforcement continuing education to meet their professional development goals and in-service training requirements.

CISA OBP completed four EBM assessments in Region 2 during 2021. Of those assessments, two were on soft targets and crowded spaces by supporting two SEAR Level 1 events, the 2021 New York Road Runners Marathon and Macy’s Day Parade. The other two models were structural models of MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and another in response to a threat incident against the United Nations. These assessments assisted Region 2 in providing their stakeholders and security planners with a relevant, visual understanding of a “what-if” scenario, which enabled them to tailor their security protocols accordingly.  

The models were provided to all necessary stakeholders, from business owners in New York’s Time Warner Center to the New York Police Department, and federal partners, protecting 33,000 marathon runners and an estimated 24,000 Macy’s Day Parade spectators. While Region 2 has certainly kept the Blast Modeling Team busy, CISA OBP is currently working on outreach opportunities with regions that are less familiar with the program.

“The unique, personalized and custom modeling for the NYC Marathon & Macy’s Parade integrated a high-resolution, interactive visual data resource which led to enhanced planning, protection, and response efforts for these iconic events… Every stakeholder presented with the current [EBM] products used the information to update current plans, procedures with security teams and operation centers… [It] will be used in future training for the NJSP for troopers who work MetLife stadium games.” – Mohammad Telab, IOD/R2/PSA

CISA OBP, in collaboration with the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group Joint Program Office (JPO), provided an update to the National Security Council (NSC) on Countering IEDs. The brief covered current intelligence, recent trends and tactics, capabilities of the U.S. government in this mission space, and discussion of policy gaps related to this topic and what the NSC can do to help resolve these challenges.