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As of September 11, the Port Authority lacked any standard operating pro-
cedures to govern how officers from multiple commands would respond to and
then be staged and utilized at a major incident at the WTC. In particular, there
were no standard operating procedures covering how different commands
should communicate via radio during such an incident.
The New York Police Department.
The 40,000-officer NYPD was
headed by a police commissioner, whose duties were not primarily operational
but who retained operational authority. Much of the NYPD's operational
activities were run by the chief of department. In the event of a major emer-
gency, a leading role would be played by the Special Operations Division.This
division included the Aviation Unit, which provided helicopters for surveys and
rescues, and the Emergency Service Unit (ESU), which carried out specialized
rescue missions.The NYPD had specific and detailed standard operating pro-
cedures for the dispatch of officers to an incident, depending on the incident's
magnitude.
16
The NYPD precincts were divided into 35 different radio zones, with a cen-
tral radio dispatcher assigned to each. In addition, there were several radio chan-
nels for citywide operations. Officers had portable radios with 20 or more
available channels, so that the user could respond outside his or her precinct.
ESU teams also had these channels but at an operation would use a separate
point-to-point channel (which was not monitored by a dispatcher).
17
The NYPD also supervised the city's 911 emergency call system. Its
approximately 1,200 operators, radio dispatchers, and supervisors were civil-
ian employees of the NYPD. They were trained in the rudiments of emer-
gency response.When a 911 call concerned a fire, it was transferred to FDNY
dispatch.
18
The Fire Department of New York.
The 11,000-member FDNY was
headed by a fire commissioner who, unlike the police commissioner, lacked
operational authority. Operations were headed by the chief of department--
the sole five-star chief.
19
The FDNY was organized in nine separate geographic divisions. Each divi-
sion was further divided into between four to seven battalions. Each battalion
contained typically between three and four engine companies and two to four
ladder companies. In total, the FDNY had 205 engine companies and 133 lad-
der companies. On-duty ladder companies consisted of a captain or lieutenant
and five firefighters; on-duty engine companies consisted of a captain or lieu-
tenant and normally four firefighters. Ladder companies' primary function was
to conduct rescues; engine companies focused on extinguishing fires.
20
The FDNY's Specialized Operations Command (SOC) contained a lim-
ited number of units that were of particular importance in responding to a
terrorist attack or other major incident.The department's five rescue compa-
nies and seven squad companies performed specialized and highly risky res-
cue operations.
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THE 9/11 COMMISSION REPORT
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