[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 155 (Monday, October 15, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2138]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E2138]]
                RECOGNIZING THE TOPOFF EXERCISE IN GUAM

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                       HON. MADELEINE Z. BORDALLO

                                of guam

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 15, 2007

  Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to underline the importance 
of territories in Homeland Security operations. I commend the 
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recognizing the importance of 
United States territories to the defense of the homeland and including 
Guam as the first U.S. territory to actively partake in the Top 
Officials or TOPOFF exercise being held this year in Arizona, Oregon, 
and Guam from October 15th to the 24th.
  The 106th Congress directed that TOPOFF exercises be conducted 
biennially. Originally the TOPOFF exercise was to be conducted by the 
Department of Justice but was transferred to the DHS on March 1, 2003 
along with the Office for Domestic Preparedness. These operations are 
designed to improve the Nation's capacity to manage complex and extreme 
terrorist events.
  TOPOFF exercises began in 2000 and took place in Denver, Colorado and 
Portsmouth, New Hampshire. In focused on two different attacks one in 
each operational area including a bioterrorist attack and a chemical 
attack. TOPOFF 2 and 3 each incorporated lessons learned from the 
previous exercises and simulated different manmade and natural disaster 
events. Most recently, during TOPOFF 3 local, Federal and private 
sector organizations began to interface with international actors--a 
facet that is once again included in TOPOFF 4. Moreover, DHS has 
refined each subsequent exercise to reflect a more realistic scenario 
for local and Federal first responders.
  TOPOFF 4 which begins today, October 15th, will be a 10-day exercise 
and will focus on five objective areas: prevention, intelligence and 
investigation, incident management, public information, and evaluation. 
The simulation will involve a series of radiological detonation 
devices, better known as ``dirty bombs'', being simultaneously 
detonated in the participating regions and will involve the interaction 
of Federal, State, and Territorial officials along with international 
regional partners and private sector participants. The scenario though 
plausible is entirely fictional and is based on no specific military or 
government intelligence and has been tailored to ensure participants' 
specific training objectives are met.
  I am encouraged that Guam will be included in TOPOFF 4 exercises. The 
inclusion of Guam in TOPOFF 4 adds a new layer of difficulty for 
national disaster planning and cooperation because it involves dealing 
with a massive event not in the continental United States. It also 
shows an underlying commitment by the U.S. government to the 
territories and their importance to maintain security for the entire 
Nation. Guam's participation in TOPOFF 4 exercises continues to 
demonstrate its strategic importance to overall U.S. security posture.

  TOPOFF 4 will highlight the ability of Guam's local first responders 
to respond to a lethal radiological attack on Guam. I know that Guam's 
emergency first responders have been working closely with the Guam 
National Guard's 94th Civil Support Team in preparing how to handle 
radiological release from a ``dirty bomb''. It is this type of 
coordination at the local level that makes this exercise important and 
useful. The delayed Federal response following Hurricane Katrina 
reminds us that our local first responders must be ready and capable of 
responding to a variety of dangerous scenarios. The TOPOFF exercise is 
critical to helping our local first responders be prepared for events 
that are similar if not larger in scale to what happened during 
Hurricane Katrina so that we may be able to avoid the mistakes of the 
past and be more successful, as a nation and region, to responding to 
such catastrophes.
  I commend the Department of Homeland Security in its choice to 
include Guam in the TOPOFF 4 exercise. The knowledge and experience 
gained from this experience will ultimately strengthen our national 
security. I also commend the Government of Guam and Federal officials 
on Guam who have worked very hard over the past several months in 
preparing for these exercises.

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