The response to last week’s bomb threats showed that somehow what was learned in crisis drills still didn’t work in reality. Unfortunately, the weakest link was the one that was supposed to stand for crisis preparedness, i.e. the Ministry of the Interior.
Last week, Estonia was once again able to demonstrate its crisis readiness. Hundreds of state institutions, primarily schools, received bomb threats by letter. The result is the same as many times before. Head presence.
Some schools were open, others were closed, others took a short break. However, the Ministry of Education and Science was able to issue three different views on how to serve during the day.
In the morning, when the school day had already started, it was advised not to react to the bomb threat. In the middle of the day, the Minister of Education and Science found that it was right to serve both one way and the other, but by the early afternoon the vice chancellor thought that in the case of a threat, studies still had to be interrupted. However, the Ministry of Education and Research has had persons responsible for crisis management. Why were they unable to provide clear and timely guidance?
Yet there was nothing unprecedented about the bomb threat – unfortunately, a rather “normal” scenario. Such things are done in exercises all the time. In addition, there was information that there had already been similar threats in Latvia. So there were all opportunities for preparation. The threatening letters arrived around two in the morning, so by the start of the school day, it should have been time to freely pass on the instructions.
Delayed response
However, they did not come. It wasn’t until 10:30 in the morning that the National Police and Border Protection Agency, our leading force in homeland security, issued a no-response notice. And that too at the request of various institutions. They probably wouldn’t have done anything on their own.
In fact, it is extremely sad that only a week after the large-scale domestic crisis preparation exercise CERVEX, Estonian public sector authorities are unable to react in one way. This suggests that there was no real crisis preparedness.
The weakest link in the response turned out to be the Ministry of the Interior, which is managed by the Police and Border Guard Board as well as the rescue agency with demining capabilities. The response was delayed, leaving school and kindergarten principals wondering what to do next. Even if that reaction is a decision not to react, the various parties need to know that the instruction is such.
We cannot assume that municipalities or school-kindergarten managements have the expertise to choose the optimal solution in a bomb threat situation. Yes, everyone acted in one way or another, but internal security decisions cannot be left to the local government level. This is a task at the state level. Last week’s case was instructive, and today there is cooperation between municipalities and the police, as a result of which the police have shared guidelines on how to act in such situations.
Leaders know what needs to be done
I read in the media the calls of the Minister of the Interior, Lauri Läänemetsa, that public sector employees should start massively undergoing crisis training. To tens of thousands of people.
At the moment, however, it seems that one such training that would be really necessary is for the Ministry of the Interior itself to do what it was created to do and give timely instructions to the Ministry of Education and Science as well as to local governments.
And before starting to spend money to train thousands of people, maybe find money even for the Kopli rescue command, so that there are real rescue workers who can come to the rescue at the right time and can help when there is a more serious bomb threat that needs to be responded to.
