Taming the concerns that have emerged in the wake of the Sept. 11 World Trade Center attacks, the Jersey City Police Department has doubled its presence on the streets under the direction of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Anywhere from 150 to 190 additional police officers are patrolling neighborhoods and keeping a careful watch on the Jersey City’s public transportation centers, municipal buildings and religious institutions, officials say.
Meanwhile, the tenants’ association of one high rise complex on the waterfront held a meeting last week to learn about these increased security measures.
"The [police] are out in the community to ensure public safety," said Edgar Martinez, the Deputy Director of the Jersey City Police Department last week. "The objective is that people feel safe."
Jersey City has endured tense times following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center last month. Besides the fact that the city is right across the river from Ground Zero and harbored many injured people who were ferried across the water on the day of the tragedy, the city has been home to suspected terrorists in the recent attack and one convicted bomber in the 1993 attack on the towers.
Alongside the Jersey City Police Department, other law enforcement agencies have coalesced to meet the objective of safety. The New Jersey State Police, U.S. Marshals, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Protection Agency are some of the agencies assisting these efforts locally.
While the increased security plan has been in effect since Sept. 11, a renewed sense of precaution has guided the Jersey City Police Department in the past week as the United States initiated its retaliation against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. "We’re out there to ensure that there are no terrorist acts that are taken upon the city," Martinez said.
Mayor Cunningham, Police Director James Carter, and Police Chief Peter Behrens have been meeting on a daily basis to see if any changes needed to be made to the city’s security plan.
Meeting with 40 senators at Liberty State Park a few days after the terrorist attacks, Cunningham was assured that Jersey City would be completely reimbursed for the overtime wages incurred since Sept. 11. According to officials in the administration, the overtime is expected to be $3 million, and the tally is still running.
In addition to increased police presence, specific procedures have been installed for extra precaution. Perhaps the most noticeable difference is at City Hall, where employees and visitors are individually screened as they enter the heavily policed building. Now, employees must show identification cards and visitors must sign in and disclose the contents of any bags they are carrying.
"The mayor wanted to make sure that the people feel safe in the city who come to City Hall," Martinez said.
Safety precautions regarding local transit systems were addressed at a meeting with some residents Wednesday night.
Answering residents’ questions
The Newport Waterfront Association, a neighborhood group comprised of tenants who live in the various waterfront high-rise residences, held a special meeting to learn about the added steps law enforcement agencies have taken.
About 40 people gathered at the cafeteria of 525 Washington Blvd. to listen to representatives from the Police Department, Fire Department, and PATH discuss security issues and address any questions.
Encouraging residents to be the "eyes and ears" of the Police Department, Officer Bernie Chester advised anyone who sees something suspicious to call the Police Department. "The Police Department considers every incident sensitive," Chester said.
He pointed out instances in which someone phoned in information about a suspicious package at a PATH station or public place and it turned out to be something harmless. "Even if it turns out to be a bag of groceries someone left behind," Chester said, "don’t be embarrassed."
A few residents asked about the possibility of a terrorist detonating a bomb in sensitive places like the Holland Tunnel and what precautions are being taken to prevent such an incident.
"The only thing we can do is take the maximum amount of precautions," said East District Commander Peter Nalbach, citing the checkpoints that now precede all tunnel entrances. "We have many, many bomb-sniffing dogs in the area. There’s no guarantee. We can do the best we can."
Alleviating people’s fears that Jersey City could be a target because of its proximity to the World Trade Center, Chester said that it was evident the hijackers were attacking a symbol of American democracy and not pinpointing any random skyscraper.
Addressing questions regarding public safety on the PATH trains, Kevin Lejda, a spokesperson from PATH, explained that the State Police were supplementing the Port Authority police in adding a visible presence on PATH platforms and entrances. As with other law enforcement agencies, the key element of providing safety is increasing visible presence, even if it is not necessarily a law enforcer that is present. Lejda said that PATH had manned all stations with at least one uniformed information agent whose responsibility it is to walk around and answer questions that commuters may have. The idea stems from the notion that uniformed presence makes a difference. He added that there are 200 cameras throughout the PATH stations that are being constantly monitored.
Also, PATH is coordinating an emergency plan to evacuate all trains, platforms and tunnels at a moment’s notice.
"We started today to put together a plan where we can close down the PATH station in the shortest period of time," Lejda said. A rough draft of the plan suggests the total time should take one hour to evacuate everyone, including employees, from the PATH stations and have the entrances closed off to the public.
Despite the increased presence of police officers in the city, residents remain worried.
"I’m glad they’re there," said Al Ming, a Jersey City resident who attended the Newport Waterfront Association meeting. "However, I don’t think it necessarily makes me feel safe."
And while he has maintained a heightened sense of awareness, he said he wasn’t sure that he knew what to be aware of.
"I feel we are so close to what happened, I think we have a greater concern," said Noemi Velazquez, a 23-year resident of Jersey City and an administrative supervisor for the Board of Education. "We fear that we could be next." She added that the schools, which regularly contract security personnel, have also increased security in the buildings and by the parking lots.