DIRK LAMMERS Associated Press writer | Posted: Monday, July 4, 2005 12:00 am
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - As tourists flock to Mount Rushmore National Memorial during the Independence Day weekend, a new federal report says protecting the Shrine of Democracy from terrorism remains difficult despite massive security efforts.
Although the mountainous Black Hills setting creates a natural barrier for Rushmore's more than 2 million annual visitors, "preventing individuals seeking to climb to the top of the monument for nefarious purposes is difficult," the June report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office said.
Most national monuments are in urban areas, so Mount Rushmore officials have to approach their jobs differently, said Chief Ranger Mike Pflaum.
"Instead of having a city environment where someone perhaps cannot hide out in the shadows endlessly, somebody can hide out in the rocks and trees here. So that complicates it for us," he said.
The report for the House Committee on Government Reform said security at Mount Rushmore remains "a major Park Service concern" despite beefed-up patrols and improvements including security cameras, fences, gates and lights.
Officials at the monument said there were no specific security concerns for the holiday weekend.
Gerard Baker, Mount Rushmore's superintendent, said park leaders are aware the terrain creates security challenges, so they regularly conduct training to identify potential threats and plan how to defend against them.
"We will continue to make this monument as safe as any other place in America," Baker said.
Officers know someone could gain a strategic advantage at Mount Rushmore by occupying a high spot around the visitor service area. Such "what ifs" lead to plans for how officers would deal with a person with a rifle or rocket launcher perched on one of those points, Pflaum said.
"Those things are not threatened," he said. "They're purely theoretic scenarios, and this terrain makes it that difficult to defend."
Park officers maintain a constant security perimeter around the mountain.
If officials learn of a specific, credible threat or if the federal Homeland Security Department raises the nation's terror threat level, officers set up a security perimeter around the visitors service area, Pflaum said.
When the alert level was at orange in early 2003, park rangers toting M-16 rifles increased their foot patrols around the visitor areas, on the paths, in the hills and even behind the four granite faces.
Park officials widen the security perimeter during special events such as the annual Independence Day celebration.
The report, "Homeland Security: Actions Needed to Better Protect National Icons and Federal Office Buildings from Terrorism," noted several threats and incidents at the memorial before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
- Between 1970 and 1973, members of the American Indian Movement made several attempts to occupy and deface the monument.
- In 1975, a bomb went off in front of the visitor center prior to visitors' morning arrival.
- In 1987, the environmental group Greenpeace climbed the mountain with plans to unfurl a 160-by-50-foot protest banner reading "We the people say no to acid rain" over the presidents' faces.
- In 1991, the Park Service received threats to assassinate then-President George H.W. Bush during a celebration marking the monument's 50th anniversary of completion.
- In 1999, a Colorado man was arrested for threatening to blow up the mountain.
The incidents prompted the National Park Service to spend about $2.9 million on security measures to protect the monument.
After the Sept. 11 attacks, the National Park Service increased the park's law enforcement budget and adjusted its security focus to include protecting visitors and employees. Officials added surveillance equipment and rangers, and they can add more officers during times of increased threat, Baker said.
Federal, local and state agencies investigate several "off-the-wall, anonymous threats" to Mount Rushmore each year, but the monument has received no serious threats since Sept. 11, Pflaum said.
"I can't deny that there are rumblings of threats, but nothing specific," he said.
Mount Rushmore National Memorial covers 1,278 acres, 40 of which are part of a visitor service area with hiking trails, an amphitheater, museum and bookstore.
To secure the mountain, park rangers regularly hike and patrol it, which is time consuming and physically challenging, the report says.
Baker said the park could always use more money for security, but he's confident leaders and staff are doing all they can to keep the monument and its visitors safe.
"We do have a very adequate staff now, but if something does occur and if we want to do any kind of changes here, of course, it always takes money," Baker said.