California Port Gets Extra $8 Million to Boost Security

California’s Port of Long Beach will get an additional $8.3 million to spend on security, now that voters have approved a new proposition to allocate those funds. Where will officials allocate those funds?

In an article on the Gazettes.com website, Kurt Helin says the funding will create a disaster management operations center, integrate the communication systems and establish an improved disaster alert system.

“This grant will not only help protect one of our nation’s most vital economic resources, but also help improve security for the Port’s workers and surrounding communities,” Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster told Helin.

According to Helin, the money is earmarked for:

• A Disaster Recovery Center where the port’s security division and business operations could continue to function in the wake of an incident ($2 million).
• A public-address system to alert port workers in an emergency ($3 million).
• Further development of a radio-frequency identification system to better track truck movements in the port complex ($1 million).
• Additional cameras for Harbor Patrol, police and fire boats ($400,000).

Helin says the adjacent Port of Los Angeles received $10 million in security money.