Olypmics beef up security

by Jenny Hugenberg
Assistant Sports Editor

A view of historic buildings, a splash of bustling commercial centers and a backdrop of mountains — sounds like a picture-perfect dream getaway.

But an estimated 70,000 to 80,000 visitors a day combined with post-Sept. 11 security measures and terrorist threats could mean a nightmare for security officials at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

The last Winter Olympics in the United States took place in 1980 at Lake Placid, N.Y. where 1,000 federal, state and local personnel were needed to handle complete security for the games. The number of security officials in Salt Lake City is more than 10,000.

Sgt. Mark Askerlund of the Salt Lake City Police Department said 165 Salt Lake City police officers were pulled to work various events during the Olympics.

Because of having so many officers on duty during the Olympics, Askerlund said the police department’s budget has gone up considerably.

“We have obviously had to increase our budget to cover the costs,” he said. “But that money is designed to come from the sales tax from the tickets sold.”

Along with the sales tax, more than $300 million in combined federal, state and local funds have been allocated for the Winter Olympics.

State and federal officers join Askerlund’s team to cover the security for events that span across 900 miles.

The Department of Defense, the U.S. Customs Service, the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the U.S. Marshals Service are just a few of the federal agencies providing security aid for the Olympics.

Special agents from the FBI are also on duty during the games. Bomb technician Russ Csaszar is one of those agents who is working at the Bomb Management Center in Salt Lake City during the Olympics. Csaszar handles calls that come into the center about bomb threats or suspicious packages.

“We work with local police as well as federal agents from the Secret Service,” Csaszar said. “We have teams at four different areas to cover calls that come in about those areas.”

Csaszar said he has witnessed the increased security at these Olympics.

“They are checking a lot more people and expanding the perimeters that are covered,” he said. “They have also implemented the use of the cameras that scan people’s faces to check them against a list of wanted criminals or suspected terrorists.”

Since Sept. 11, other security measures have been added. Air security was stepped up, entrance to venues is stricter and non-competition sites were made more secure.

“We have been preparing for this for five years,” Askerlund said. “The notion is that these are the most secure games there have ever been.”

But even with the advanced security Csaszar said there are no guarantees.

“The security is highly visible and highly trained,” he said. “There is as much security as there can be and there is not much more we can do. There just is no guarantee that nothing will happen — we cannot control it.”