As the nation's fifth largest city and the home to some of America's most famous sites, Philadelphia's safety has been a huge concern for city officials following Sept. 11.
"The city's security has been evolving ever since September 11," Frank Keel, a spokesman for Mayor John Street, said. "The city has taken considerable steps to ensure greater public safety."
One of the most visible changes within the city was increased security at some of Philadelphia's most famous landmarks at Independence Historical National Park in Old City.
Although some of the measures taken in the weeks and months immediately following Sept. 11 have since been reduced, security at the historic sites remains heightened.
For example, visitors to Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell must go through a screening before being admitted to the sites.
The security has been "scaled back slightly, but there is still a greater presence than there ever had been," Keel said.
Beyond the historical sites, additional surveillance and security have been added to utility plants, gas and oil refineries, water treatment facilities, the Philadelphia Stock Exchange and the Red Cross headquarters.
The city has also been examining its emergency and communications procedures over the past year.
"We have a much greater understanding of weapons of mass destruction in terms of how we can protect and prepare for the horrible possibility of weapons of mass destruction," Keel said.
A recent program has the city joining in an intergovernmental cooperative agreement where city, county, state and local governments can work together in a regional anti-terrorist network.
As far as emergency communications are concerned, the key component is an 800-megahertz radio system that can be encoded, allowing only government officials to receive the messages.
"It is highly secure in that regard," Keel said. "It's the most state-of-art [radio] available."
In another security program, the Philadelphia Police Department put together a Rapid Deployment Team. This group of officers is designated to respond to instances of terrorism within 30 minutes.
"They respond not to run-of-the-mill crimes, but terroristic threats specifically," Keel explained.
Finally, a Rapid Assessment Team was developed to respond to possible bioterrorist attacks. The team, which operates under the Health Department, is composed of Health Department, police and fire personnel. In the past year, six of these teams have responded to 1,200 cases of possible bioterrorism threats, including several calls on the Penn campus last fall.
"It's a different world now and we understand that," Keel said. "We have to protect our people first and foremost and also our resources and our landmarks."
