|
CUSTOMS AGENCY DIRECTS EMPLOYEES TO RESCIND FEMA VOLUNTEER OFFERS |
|
by Ted Bridis
Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2005 (AP) - WASHINGTON-The U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency ordered its employees to stop volunteering for hurricane relief duty, and to rescind any offers already made with the government's primary disaster agency, to ensure its police forces aren't stretched too thin in the Gulf of Mexico's coastal region. With hundreds of its law enforcement officers already in storm-ravaged areas, the agency said the decision would ensure adequate numbers of armed federal officers remained to work with local police, protect rescuers and help with evacuations. In an internal memorandum distributed to Customs Enforcement employees, the agency's director of human resources, Christine M. Greco, directed workers to withdraw offers to volunteer with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to support rescue and communications efforts. Both are agencies within the Department of Homeland Security. "We want to be careful we're not stretched too thin," said a spokesman for Customs Enforcement, Dean Boyd. "It's a daunting task helping with local police." Boyd said the decision was made with FEMA's approval. The disaster agency last week solicited more than 1,000 volunteers from elsewhere in the Homeland Security Department to support rescue operations and inform victims where to seek help. Greco's memo, obtained by The Associated Press, told Customs Enforcement employees who volunteered that "you will instead be part of the ICE effort to support law enforcement activities." Greco praised the hundreds of employees who already had volunteered to work under FEMA, calling them "valiant and considerate." She said any Customs Enforcement employees unhappy with the new volunteer arrangement "may make their desires known through their chain of command." Boyd said the agency already has deployed more than 700 law enforcement and support workers to the Gulf Coast, plus equipment that includes detention buses and mobile command centers. http://news.findlaw.com/ap/o/51/09-08-2005/fc9a000ebf61e875.html Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
