At the height of the ski season last winter, four Colorado ski resorts were forced to deal with the “unthinkable.” Aspen, Vail, Copper Mountain and Keystone simultaneously experienced extortion attempts, coupled with bomb threats. The threats, communicated via letters found on the ski areas’ property, demanded payment of specifed amounts of money through an elaborate procedure. Failure to pay, according to the letters, would result in the detonation of bombs on the areas’ ski lifts during operating hours.
Though eventually exposed as hoaxes, the bomb threats resulted in high anxiety for area managements, tying up personnel and equipment in search procedures for a number of weeks. For the area operators, there was no alternative to the costly daily searches — they could not jeopardize their customers’ and employees’ lives by assuming it was a hoax. They acted on the assumption that the threats were real. For two of them, with the extortion deadline past and without compliance by any area involved, the anxiety increased when another threat was received through the mail.
Prior to the incident two of the areas had outlined an emergency procedure for the handling of bomb threats. Keystone’s was set up by their security staff following a threat in a hotel a couple of years earlier. Aspen Skiing Corp. had outlined a communications procedure, primarily a contact list of people with a “need to know.” All four areas have since formalized extensive bomb threat handling procedures.
Though reluctant to talk about the situation, fearful that any sort of publicity perpetuates situations, representatives of each ski area agreed that it would be better to share their experiences with other ski area operators who, like they once had, might feel that “that kind of thing can’t happen here.”
How the Ski Areas Reacted
“We used common sense and called the police,” said Bob Cornish, security manager for the Aspen Skiing Corporation. Subsequent to calling the Aspen Police Department, Aspen officials notified the Pitkin County sheriff, the US Forest Service and the FBI. Jurisdiction fell to the local police and sheriff’s offices, which provided tips on search techniques. In Aspen, visual inspection of all the lifts was performed daily by ski patrol and lift crews and members of the snowcat crew were assigned to patrol the lift lines. Vail, Keystone and Copper Mountain reacted in a similar manner.
The resorts reported that all law enforcement agencies, whether they had jurisdiction or not, were helpful with advice and remained available in an advisory capacity. The ski areas also stayed in touch with each other, pooling information and ideas, at times setting up “hotline” conference calls. At Vail, where Vice President Mondale was skiing when the second bomb threat was received, the Secret Service assigned to protective duty advised area personnel on handling that situation. (Mondale skied in spite of the threats — as did most Vail guests.)
Informing the Public
Three of the four areas made a point of informing their customers by posting notices at all the lifts and ticket windows and handing out flyers advising people that the ski area had received a bomb threat and that skiers, in an unusual sense, were “skiing at their own risk.”
“We took the position that we should not make an issue out of the situation, fearing it would invite pranksters and hoaxes which would disrupt the police work on the problem. The FBI contends that this is the better way to handle the situation,” said Bob Cornish of Aspen.
“I feel we defused the situation by drafting a statement and handing it to skiers in the lift lines,” says Fred Jones, mountain operations V.P. at Copper Mountain. “People skied anyway.”
Jones added that security personnel stationed at parking lot entrances were a “visual deterrent,” and no overnight locker storage was allowed. This was followed up by nightly locker checks.
After a second bomb threat, Vail posted the following statement at lifts: “Vail Associates, Inc., has received its second bomb threat within 10 days. Law enforcement agencies and our own security staff are continuing an investigation. If you see anything or an incident which causes you to be suspicious, please notify Vail Associates.”
Publicity
The local media reported the bomb threats at their respective ski areas, but the news remained localized, although the media did feed the wire services. A national wire service reporter noted the warning posted at Keystone while purchasing a lift ticket. She decided not to follow up on the story. Her reaction reflects what an airlines spokesperson recently described as a “professional attitude” among the press people who might normally report such incidents. Aware that many bomb threats are hoaxes, and sensitive to the proliferation of threats following bomb explosions or scares, press people are reluctant to publicize these incidents. A threat is not “news” in the sense that a bomb explosion is.
The ski areas did prepare advisories to answer any press queries they might receive, but otherwise no press releases were disseminated.
The Aftermath
All four ski areas now have a formalized procedure for handling bomb threats. Not surprisingly, it is centered on communications and the central communicator, the area’s switchboard operator. Detailed procedures exist for handling phoned bomb threats, as well as those received in the mail or otherwise. The procedures were established with the aid of law enforcement groups and are primarily confidential — those with the “need to know” do so.
Tom Harned, special projects manager for Vail Associates, says the procedure will be part of an overall “site safety plan” for handling any emergencies. Appropriate personnel are trained to handle the initial contacts, searches and dissemination of information. A contact list — U.S. Forest Service, legal counsel, management personnel and the insurance company, among others — is maintained at the switchboard.
Setting Up Emergency Procedures
Local law enforcement agencies and the regional FBI office are the best sources of information and advice for setting up emergency procedures. Working with them, ski area operators can determine the jurisdiction of all the entities if such an incident should occur. The Aspen Skiing Corporation arranged a briefing for key employees which was done by a spokesperson from the Denver Police Department’s bomb squad. It would be wise to contact the local telephone company as well, which can offer advise on handling phoned bomb threats.
The “it can’t happen here” syndrome is too often the flaw in management. By being prepared to handle “the unthinkable,” a ski area operator can defuse potentially dangerous situations when they occur, with the result that people’s lives are actually saved.
Other resource material
A fifteen-page booklet, “Bomb Threats – A Management Guideline,” has been printed by Marsh & McLennan, Incorporated, an insurance brokerage firm with offices in most of the major cities in the United States. (Other insurance firms may provide similar resources for information.) It provides guidelines for the handling of probable hoaxes as well as probable threats.
For guidelines in dealing with the press, ski area public relations and management personnel can get a copy of “The Newswriter & Air Accidents,” published by the Aviation and Space Writers Association. Although bomb threats occupy a minor portion of the editorial content, and although it is geared to the press membership of the organization, the booklet has some useful information. Send $.50 to Aviation/Space Writers Association, Cliffwood Road, Chester, NJ 07930.
