“This was not unforeseeable,” said former U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Michael Chertoff, during Flattening the Curve — Lessons Learned During COVID-19 and the Future of Public Safety, a webinar by Carbyne.
Chertoff said that while he was at DHS, the department — along with the Department of Health and Human Services and scientists — published a “very detailed” playbook about concerns of a spread of the H1N1 virus. The plan detailed who has what authority, roles people would assume and the need to have a stockpile of equipment that could be used for diagnostic or testing purposes.
Chertoff said that during his time at DHS there was a concern about a bio-terrorism attack. “We built a whole system of surveillance to do early detection of a bio-weapon. This is not new, it’s been part of the landscape for at least 20 years,” he said. “What probably happened over time is we’ve gotten lucky that Ebola and SARS didn’t make it over here, and we got complacent.”
Ed Davis, former commissioner of the Boston Police Department, said lack of preparation caught police forces all over the country flatfooted and the lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and how to use it was at the forefront of that. “This was an extreme crisis and the first big problem the police faced was lack of PPE, and they were not prepared policy-wise for what should happen to protect their people,” he said. “That has to be corrected as we move into September.”
Kevin Brock, former assistant director of the FBI, echoed that the PPE shortage was most impactful right off the bat and as a parent of a first responder, felt it first-hand as he tried to assemble materials himself. “We’re not very good at foreseeing some of these incredible challenges before they happen,” he said.
He said that from a technology standpoint, the challenge now is to develop a remote workforce. “Even law enforcement is finding that they’re having to do more work from home,” he said.
Brock referenced how easy it is for politicians and the public to get complacent about potential threats during calm periods and called this a “rude wake-up call.” He said it’s beyond time to come up with reliable tests that can scale. “That’s fundamental.
“There has been confusion about the roles and responsibilities at the federal, state and local levels,” he said. “It will be important, if we get a break this summer, not to take the foot off the pedal and say we’re done assembling a plan and getting material and to be ready for what might come in the fall.”
Brock said he’s concerned about vulnerabilities as a society and how those might have been revealed to enemies around the world. “How is it being assessed by our enemies and is it affecting opportunities in the future for weaponization?” he said. “Other intelligence agencies around the world are taking note of this, looking at how we’re handling it.”
