Maryland State Police stockpiling...for a bump in the road?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

Maryland State Police superintendent Col. David B. Mitchell says leave has been cancelled for all 2,500 officers...they've ordered an unspecified gas reserve, a 2 month supply of vehicle parts. Hand operated gas pumps at all state police barracks.

the story

-- Don (dwegner@cheyenneweb.com), August 12, 1999

Answers

http://www.jrnl.com/news/99/Aug/jrn147120899.html

State police, prisons prepare for Y2K

By SETH HETTENA

Associated Press

ANNAPOLIS - Law enforcement agencies around Maryland are making preparations in the event the new millennium begins in chaos.

The Maryland State Police and the agency overseeing the state's prisons both say they will be ready in case the Y2K computer bug causes blackouts and other disruptions Jan. 1.

Maryland has spent more than $100 million to fix its computer systems and avert a disaster, but state police and prison officials are taking no chances.

Col. David B. Mitchell, the superintendent of the state police, assured lawmakers Tuesday that the agency will be ``ready to go'' on New Year's Eve.

``We are as prepared as we possibly can be,'' he said.

Mitchell has canceled leave for all 2,500 officers, ordered gas reserves filled and a two-months supply of vehicle parts. Hand- operated gas pumps will be available in every state police barrack. All 12 state police helicopters will be ready and all officers will be on alert.

But Mitchell said he was cracking down on some local law enforcement agencies, which he did not identify, which were a bit lax about the Year 2000 threat.

``Some have not viewed this as seriously as they should,'' he said. ``They are now.''

It's feared that without repairs, computers and software will malfunction on New Year's Day when the year changes to ``00,'' which some computers might perceive as 1900. To get a preview of what may happen, state police will be monitoring what happens in Europe and Australia as the globe spins into the New Year.

``Hopefully, this will be the biggest non-event of the century,'' Mitchell told the state House Public Safety and Administration Subcommittee.

Leonard Sipes, a spokesman for the Maryland Department of Public Safety, said his agency has been preparing for disasters long before Y2K became an issue.

``Not only are we ready, we've been ready for years,'' he said yesterday.

The department, which houses 27,000 inmates around the state, will have hundreds of tactical officers backed by 30 canines on alert New Year's Eve, ready to hop on a bus and quash a disturbance.

Prisons are designed to work without power and correctional officers have been conducting drills involving disasters, riots and power outages.

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-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), August 12, 1999.


Police state 12-31-1999 think i said that back in february or march they'll be on every corner. when hoardes of drunk people and police are mixed together, .....

Pollys and doomers alike should agree, the end of the year is going to be probably the most interesting(to say the least) time in recorded history....

-- Super (Slfsl@yahoo.com), August 12, 1999.


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