Life in Tennessee, Georgia reflects new precautions
Security is tighter. Mail is handled in new ways. Anthrax is part of the vocabulary. And old crimes have new meanings.
In Tennessee and Georgia, state and local officials have taken new precautions to respond to future terrorist threats.
Wendell Gilbert, director of the Tennessee Office of Homeland Security and deputy to Gov. Don Sundquist, said the state is trying to implement new security efforts without inconveniencing residents too much.
“One thing we don’t want the terrorists to do is upset our lifestyle,” he said.
“There has to be judgment there. There has to be balance.”
Federal money has allowed state health officials to buy computers and hire more lab workers, officials said. State lawmakers created a new felony to help prosecutors seek the death penalty against terrorists. And new laws attempt to ban price gouging during emergencies.
In Georgia, Gov. Roy Barnes formed a homeland security task force after last year’s attacks. The task force began working to identify potential terrorist targets, increase security at major events, and create a statewide emergency communications network, spokesman Jim Shuler said.
The Georgia Information Sharing and Analysis Center is staffed with local law enforcement officials and some from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Mr. Shuler said.
The task force pinpointed memorials, conventions and sporting events that would draw lots of people, Mr. Shuler said. He said the state worked with private companies and local law enforcement to tighten security at the events.
After the terrorist attacks and the anthrax scare last October, companies across the nation put in new security measures and mail-handling procedures.
Employees at UnumProvident in Chattanooga now must have electronic key cards to gain access to buildings, said Tom White, vice president of investor relations. Mail is handled in a central location using rubber gloves and other precautions, he said.
“You still read enough about those kind of scares,” Mr. White said. “Thankfully, there hasn’t been a recurrence on a national scale.”
Hamilton County District Attorney General Bill Cox said his office now looks differently at the problem of identity theft.
“Is this an economic crime, or is there another motive?” he said. Now it could be a potential terrorist trying to gain access to society, Mr. Cox said.
Allen Craig, the Tennessee Department of Health’s epidemiologist, said the department has received $20 million to combat a potential bioterrorism threat.
The money allows the department to hire more epidemiologists to investigate diseases and expand labs and testing facilities, Dr. Craig said.
“I hope this will help put the public at ease, “he said.