21st Century FEMA Study Course: Retail Security Awareness: Understanding the Hidden Hazards (IS-912) - Identifying and Report Suspicious Purchases or Thefts of Dangerous Products by Terrorists

This Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) independent training course manual from the Emergency Management Institute (EMI) was written to make persons involved in commercial retail operations aware of the actions they can take to identify and report suspicious purchases or thefts of products that actors could use in terrorist or other criminal activities. To achieve this goal, the course intends to provide an overview of prevention steps aimed at identifying and monitoring high-risk inventory products and reporting suspicious activities to law enforcement agencies.

Course Objectives: At the end of this course, you should be able to:

* Identify steps that you can take to help prevent your inventory from being used to manufacture or deploy homemade explosives.

* Describe the importance of identifying and reporting suspicious purchases and activities in the retail sector.

* Specify additional actions you can take to protect your inventory from misuse or theft.

Retail Partners: There have been several attempts in the recent past to purchase chemicals or other materials through retail outlets that can be used to make explosives. In a few critical instances, retail personnel reported their suspicions to law enforcement and thwarted a potential attack. The suppliers of these materials were not limited to laboratory and chemical supply companies. They also include retail outlets such as home improvement stores, beauty supply stores, drug stores, and grocery stores. The law enforcement officers investigating these incidents have found that the targets for the explosives include critical infrastructure, such as electrical power stations, reservoirs, hydroelectric dams, nuclear power plants, and other facilities. Because the cases have not come to trial, details cannot be provided here. Nonetheless, they demonstrate the crucial role retailers play in protecting our Nation. Think about the consequences if retail personnel fail to report their suspicions.

As a bonus, this compilation includes Disaster Response: Staff Officer's Handbook with Observations, Insights, and Lessons - Comprehensive Information on Military Response to Natural Disasters, Emergency Management, Terrorism.
This is a uniquely valuable, informative, and up-to-date guide to military emergency management response, covering all aspects of defense support to civilians in times of crisis. Contents: Introduction * Chapter 1 - The Language of Disasters and Incidents * Chapter 2 - The Legal Framework * Chapter 3 - The National Response Framework and National Incident Management System * Chapter 4 - Department of Defense Role in Incident Response * Chapter 5 - Emergency Support Functions * Appendix A - Unit Planning Considerations * Appendix B - Casualties * Appendix C - Biological Incidents * Appendix D - Nuclear and Radiological Incidents * Appendix E - Catastrophic Incidents * Appendix F - Terrorist Incidents * Appendix G - Mass Evacuation Incidents * Appendix H - Nongovernmental Organizations * Appendix I - Legal Considerations and Law Enforcement * Appendix J - Operations Security * Appendix K - Airspace Command and Control * Appendix L - Search and Rescue * Appendix M - After-Action Reviews * Appendix N - Composite Risk Management * Appendix O - State Points of Contact * Appendix P - Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officers * Appendix Q - Websites.

Natural and man-made disasters in the United States cause pain and heartbreak to our fellow citizens. Picking up the pieces of shattered lives and homes is devastating, even to the stoutest among us. While the military cannot repair the emotional damage, it can mitigate the effects of tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, wildland fires, oil spills, and terrorist attacks.