JCAT: Linking Counterterrorism Intelligence to the Fire Service

By CHRIS FLATLEY

Threats to our national security come in all forms, including fire. To assist first responders in their planning of “fire terrorism” response efforts, the Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team (JCAT) has the tools and resources to potentially save lives and protect a community. The JCAT is a joint effort by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC). The team creates counterterrorism products for the state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) audiences to improve intelligence sharing with first responder communities with a state and local perspective.

• Preplanning for a Small-Town Terrorist Attack
• FIRST RESPONDERS’ FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE IN TERRORISM RESPONSES
• Terrorism Training for First Responders: Diminishing ‘Responder Fatigue’
• TERRORISM AND SECURITY ISSUES WHEN RESPONDING TO INDUSTRIAL FACILITIES

JCAT Formation

Formerly known as the Interagency Threat Assessment & Coordination Group (ITACG), the ITACG was created in 2007 as a DHS lead activity. In 2013, the team was reorganized with a director from NCTC and deputy directors from DHS and FBI into what is now known as JCAT. JCAT members are SLTT public safety professionals from around the country, working with federal intelligence analysts from NCTC, DHS, and FBI.

JCAT is successful at providing tools and resources to our first responders only because of their fellows. JCAT fellows advocate for the counterterrorism intelligence requirements and the needs of first responders across the intelligence community and seek relevant federally coordinated threat information on international terrorism or terrorism-related trends that can impact local or regional public safety conditions. JCAT fellows also coordinate with the broader intelligence community to develop products at the lowest possible classification level to ensure the greatest distribution and highest level of situational awareness.

Since their creation, the ITACG and JCAT have had 65 responder fellows from 59 departments and agencies from across the country participate. The program provides many benefits to the individual and host agency. Fellows will develop an enhanced understanding of the federal counterterrorism landscape, current and emerging threat trends, and how terrorist tactics can impact first responder safety. Agencies will see the benefit of sponsoring fellows as soon as they get back to the department. When they return, they will be able to expand the agency’s counterterrorism efforts, provide briefings to policy makers that include context to open-source reporting, and offer insight to areas where the home agency can plan and prepare for a counterterrorism incident in their community.

Since 9/11, the nation has come to realize that the fire service has earned a “seat at the table” when it comes to terrorist responses because many of the specialty skills required for these responses reside within the fire service’s core competencies. To capitalize on the opportunity to be at the table, first responders have gone on to be JCAT fellows.

For one year (2012-2013), I was a JCAT fellow. As a Fire Department of New York (FDNY) lieutenant working at the Center for Terrorism and Disaster Preparedness prior to becoming a JCAT fellow, I have been involved in the production of many of the finished intelligence products published by the FDNY.

I was serving at NCTC during the Benghazi attacks in September 2012 that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and two other Americans. As fire was a significant component of the attack, my fire service expertise proved invaluable to the greater intelligence community. I was also instrumental in ensuring that the JCAT had a great reputation for its work, both within the intelligence and the first responder communities.

On returning to New York City, I found myself once again filling a new role—this time, with the FBI as an intelligence analyst for its New York office’s Joint Terrorism Task Force Threat Response Squad. This new position was monumental for me and the FBI; I had become the first nonlaw enforcement officer to serve as a fire service intelligence analyst in the FBI. I continued to serve in this position until I retired in 2020, making impacts to the FBI and first responder community throughout. The relationship between the FBI’s New York office and the FDNY continues to be strong and seeks ways to improve efforts to provide for the safety of all New York citizens.

Developing Understanding and New Programs

Working with FBI agents and Task Force officers, I was able to expand their understanding of the information that the fire service can provide, including the following:

• Analytical support through searches of FDNY datasets from inspectional activities and responses.
• Operational support with information from fire laws and building codes.
• Liaising during crises and special events when the Joint Operations Center opened.
• Liaison with other intelligence community partners on the JTTF to support their operational needs.

I was also able to develop new programs, specifically the following:

• Training for special agents and Task Force officers in marine operations through the Marine Division so the trained cadre can board an FDNY vessel for special events or in times of crisis to improve information sharing. The first deployment of FBI Task Force officers with FDNY Marine assets occurred on New Year’s Eve in 2019.
• Introduced FBI victim assistance agents to the FDNY Family Assistance Unit. The groups share many of the same needs and wants. This is an ongoing project where FDNY’s local network has great potential to support the FBI.

My placement in the FBI has also had benefits to the FDNY as well. The value added to the FDNY included the following:

• Providing FDNY senior leadership a bimonthly briefing to the chief of department with information on the work that was being done to ensure the community is prepared to respond to potential terrorist incidents involving fire.
• Supporting projects of the FDNY Center for Terrorism and Disaster Preparedness by providing information on issues from across all the FDNY bureaus.

JCAT alumni can still participate with conference calls on product development and requests for information. The JCAT experience can be one of the most rewarding of your professional career.

CHRIS FLATLEY served for 32 years with the Fire Department of New York (FDNY), retiring as a captain in 2020. Much of his career was dedicated to disaster preparedness and counterterrorism analysis. His assignments provided the FDNY with a unique perspective on the trends of the evolving tactics, techniques, and procedures that impact the first responder community. He also briefed policy makers so they could adequately plan, purchase, train, and prepare for disasters, natural or man-made.