Anti-terrorism conference addresses resort security risks

Kevin Rademacher and Richard N. Velotta

Thursday, June 19, 2003 | 11:05 a.m.

A high-profile resort makes for a good target, says Jerry Keller, vice president of security for Wynn Resorts Ltd.

With that in mind, the former Las Vegas sheriff is approaching security for the company's $2.4 billion Le Reve resort on the Las Vegas Strip with caution, he said Wednesday at a Las Vegas anti-terrorism conference.

The two-day event, sponsored by the Washington-based Homeland Education Resource Organization, concluded Wednesday. The conference, titled "Gambling with Security: Hospitality and Gaming Face High Stakes," focused on reducing risks and increasing security in the post-Sept. 11 era of terrorism awareness. Panels also focused on what resorts can do to prepare for terrorist acts.

"I know that, should Las Vegas become a target, Le Reve will be in the cross hairs," Keller said. "That's how I am preparing my systems."

Speaking to about 40 casino security executives, Keller outlined several key factors in preparing for the possibility for a terrorist strike in Las Vegas.

Local resort companies, Keller said, must have in place -- and execute -- a training plan. That plan, he added, should be followed up with retraining.

"It is critical to our success, and it helps minimize culpability," Keller said.

Like an emphasis on retraining, much of the measures he outlined called for going a step further to create the best possible security plans. Similarly, Keller pointed to the long-recognized security mantra of high visibility.

"We have known for years that visibility can minimize (risk)," he said. "Visibility and contact can prevent."

With that, Keller said a security staff that is talking with guests and engaging crowds can further alleviate dangerous situations.

"That's how to make a difference," he said.

Companies must also take an active roll in determining how to handle the nation's terror alert system.

"When we go from yellow to orange ... are you going to change the way you do business?" he said.

When the nation first elevated its status to orange, it stayed there for 18 days, he said, adding that St. Louis had the only police department in the country that maintained heightened security for the entire period.

"It cost $1.5 million to do it, too," Keller said.

A consistent plan in handling such situations is important to smooth management.

"Whatever it is, we have got to have the ability to ramp up smoothly," he said. "More importantly, we need the ability to ramp down smoothly. And we need to be able to tell when and why."

Companies must also have established partnerships to assist in the management of a crisis situation.

"At Le Reve, you can bet that I am going to be working closely with the Venetian ... and the Stardust and the Frontier," Keller said of the north Strip properties. "If something happens to one of us, we are all going down."

Those partnerships include arrangements for the placement of emergency communications equipment to prevent outages in case of a catastrophe. They would also include familiarity with the systems and facilities at neighboring properties to allow access in a rescue attempt.

He also pointed to the need for all properties to be as strong as the next in terms of security.

"We must have a plan for consistency," Keller said. "The target will be the weakest link."

In a Tuesday panel session, three experts set the stage for Keller's presentation by discussing some of the things resorts can do to prepare for a terrorist act -- and they concurred that no amount of preparation can adequately ready properties for anything as devastating as the attack on the World Trade Center.

Don Ahl, director of safety and security for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, said he toured the World Trade Center days before two airliners were hijacked and crashed into the buildings.

"They had as secure a site as any public place in America," Ahl said of the New York skyscrapers that collapsed after the attack.

Ahl said $25 million in security enhancements were built around the base of the World Trade Center to protect against a scenario in which a stolen armored car filled with explosives was rammed into the building.

Security enhancements alone can't prevent an attack, Ahl said, which is why awareness is so important. Ahl said he relies on the eyes and ears of equipment maintenance workers, electricians and housekeepers as well as those of contractors who haul 15 million to 25 million pounds of freight in and out of a major show at the 3.5 million-square-foot Las Vegas Convention Center.

Panelist Christian Hardigree said another way for security professionals to make their buildings more secure is to practice reaction to a terrorism scenario, including how to report an incident to other authorities.

Hardigree, a University of Nevada, Las Vegas professor in the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration and also a practicing attorney, says she has a graphic demonstration for her students on how difficult it is to report a traumatic incident. She said she occasionally arranges to be "attacked" by a colleague in the middle of a lecture and then asks students to write a report on an incident form about what happened.

She said the exercise demonstrates how important it is to provide information that would be needed by investigators and litigators in the future as well as how difficult it is to recall important details when under stress.

Hardigree said resorts must become experts at handling everyday criminal activity before they can expect to be ready for a terrorist attack. She also said the opening of car trunks at some properties will do little to thwart an attack because a terrorist isn't likely to place an explosive in plain sight in the trunk of a car.

"We're opening trunks, but we're not opening suitcases," she said.

Panelist George Joseph, a consulting investigator and author, said casino properties need to invest in better, more sophisticated equipment if they expect to gather intelligence information that can be used to head off a terrorist act.

He suggested that companies upgrade to digital camera technology from standard analog equipment and to place cameras around perimeter doors and at casino cages in addition to in traditional "eye-in-the-sky" casino locations. The more sophisticated equipment would help produce better images of people which can be compared to databases of known criminal suspects.

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