Risk Management Series
Primer to Design Safe School Projects in Case of Terrorist Attacks
December 2003


FEMA


FEMA 428 / December 2003




APPENDIX B - GENERAL GLOSSARY 

This appendix contains some terms that do not actually appear in this manual. 

They have been included to present a comprehensive list that pertains to this 
series of publications. 

A

Access control. Any combination of barriers, gates, electronic security 
equipment, and/or guards that can deny entry to unauthorized personnel or 
vehicles. 

Access control point. A station at an entrance to a building or a portion of a 
building where identification is checked and people and hand-carried items are 
searched. 

Access controls. Procedures and controls that limit or detect access to minimum 
essential infrastructure resource elements (e.g., people, technology, 
applications, data, and/or facilities), thereby protecting these resources 
against loss of integrity, confidentiality, accountability, and/or availability. 

Accountability. The explicit assignment of responsibilities for oversight of 
areas of control to executives, managers, staff, owners, providers, and users of 
minimum essential infrastructure resource elements. 

Active vehicle barrier. An impediment placed at an access control point that may 
be manually or automatically deployed in response to detection of a threat. 

Aerosol. Fine liquid or solid particles suspended in a gas (e.g., fog or smoke). 

Aggressor. Any person seeking to compromise a function or structure. 

Airborne contamination. Chemical or biological agents introduced into and 
fouling the source of supply of breathing or conditioning air. 

Antiterrorism (AT). Defensive measures used to reduce the vulnerability of 
individuals, forces, and property to terrorist acts. 

Area lighting. Lighting that illuminates a large exterior area. 

Assessment. The evaluation and interpretation of measurements and other 
information to provide a basis for decision-making. 

Asset. A resource of value requiring protection. An asset can be tangible (e.g., 
people, buildings, facilities, equipment, activities, operations, and 
information) or intangible (e.g., processes or a company's information and 
reputation). 

Asset protection. Security program designed to protect personnel, facilities, 
and equipment, in all locations and situations, accomplished through planned and 
integrated application of combating terrorism, physical security, operations 
security, and personal protective services, and supported by intelligence, 
counterintelligence, and other security programs. 

Asset value. The degree of debilitating impact that would be caused by the 
incapacity or destruction of an asset. 

Attack. A hostile action resulting in the destruction, injury, or death to the 
civilian population, or damage or destruction to public and private property. 

B

Balanced magnetic switch. A door position switch utilizing a reed switch held in 
a balanced or center position by interacting magnetic fields when not in alarm 
condition. 

Ballistics attack. An attack in which small arms (e.g., pistols, submachine 
guns, shotguns, and rifles) are fired from a distance and rely on the flight of 
the projectile to damage the target. 

Barbed tape or concertina. A coiled tape or coil of wires with wire barbs or 
blades deployed as an obstacle to human trespass or entry into an area. 

Barbed wire. A double strand of wire with four-point barbs equally spaced along 
the wire deployed as an obstacle to human trespass or entry into an area. 

Barcode. A black bar printed on white paper or tape that can be easily read with 
an optical scanner. 

Biological agents. Living organisms or the materials derived from them that 
cause disease in or harm to humans, animals, or plants or cause deterioration of 
material. 

Biological agents may be used as liquid droplets, aerosols, or dry powders. 
Blast curtains. Heavy curtains made of blast-resistant materials that could 
protect the occupants of a room from flying debris. 

Blast-resistant glazing. Window opening glazing that is resistant to blast 
effects because of the interrelated function of the frame and glazing material 
properties frequently dependent upon tempered glass, polycarbonate, or laminated 
glazing. 

Blast vulnerability envelope. The geographical area in which an explosive device 
will cause damage to assets. 

Bollard. A vehicle barrier consisting of a cylinder, usually made of steel and 
sometimes filled with concrete, placed on end in the ground and spaced about 3 
feet apart to prevent vehicles from passing, but allowing entrance of 
pedestrians and bicycles. 

Building hardening. Enhanced construction that reduces vulnerability to external 
blast and ballistic attacks. 

Building separation. The distance between closest points on the exterior walls 
of adjacent buildings or structures. 

C

Cable barrier. Cable or wire rope anchored to and suspended off the ground or 
attached to chain-link fence to act as a barrier to moving vehicles. 

Chemical agent. A chemical substance that is intended to kill, seriously injure, 
or incapacitate people through physiological effects. Generally separated by 
severity of effect (e.g., lethal, blister, and incapacitating). 

Clear zone. An area that is clear of visual obstructions and landscape materials 
that could conceal a threat or perpetrator. 

Closed circuit television (CCTV). An electronic system of cameras, control 
equipment, recorders, and related apparatus used for surveillance or alarm 
assessment. 

Collateral damage. Injury or damage to assets that are not the primary target of 
an attack. 

Combating terrorism. The full range of federal programs and activities applied 
against terrorism, domestically and abroad, regardless of the source or motive. 

Community. A political entity that has the authority to adopt and enforce laws 
and ordinances for the area under its jurisdiction. In most cases, the community 
is an incorporated town, city, township, village, or unincorporated area of a 
county; however, each state defines its own political subdivisions and forms of 
government. 

Components and cladding. Elements of the building envelope that do not qualify 
as part of the main wind-force resisting system. 

Confidentiality. The protection of sensitive information against unauthorized 
disclosure and sensitive facilities from physical, technical, or electronic 
penetration or exploitation. 

Consequence Management. Measures to protect public health and safety, restore 
essential government services, and provide emergency relief to governments, 
businesses, and individuals affected by the consequences of terrorism. State and 
local governments exercise the primary authority to respond to the consequences 
of terrorism. 

Contamination. The undesirable deposition of a chemical, biological, or 
radiological material on the surface of structures, areas, objects, or people. 

Control center. A centrally located room or facility staffed by personnel 
charged with the oversight of specific situations and/ or equipment. 

Controlled area. An area into which access is controlled or limited. It is that 
portion of a restricted area usually near or surrounding a limited or exclusion 
area. Correlates with exclusion zone. 

Controlled lighting. Illumination of specific areas or sections. 

Controlled perimeter. A physical boundary at which vehicle and personnel access 
is controlled at the perimeter of a site. Access control at a controlled 
perimeter should demonstrate the capability to search individuals and vehicles. 

Conventional construction. Building construction that is not specifically 
designed to resist weapons, explosives, or chemical, biological, and 
radiological effects. 

Conventional construction is designed only to resist common loadings and 
environmental effects such as wind, seismic, and snow loads. 

Coordinate. To advance systematically an exchange of information among 
principals who have or may have a need to know certain information in order to 
carry out their roles in a response. 

Counterintelligence. Information gathered and activities conducted to protect 
against: espionage, other intelligence activities, sabotage, or assassinations 
conducted for or on behalf of foreign powers, organizations, or persons; or 
international terrorist activities, excluding personnel, physical, document, and 
communications security programs. 

Counterterrorism (CT). Offensive measures taken to prevent, deter, and respond 
to terrorism. 

Covert entry. Attempts to enter a facility by using false credentials or 
stealth. 

Crash bar. A mechanical egress device located on the interior side of a door 
that unlocks the door when pressure is applied in the direction of egress. 

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED). A crime prevention 
strategy based on evidence that the design and form of the built environment can 
influence human behavior. CPTED usually involves the use of three principles: 
natural surveillance (by placing physical features, activities, and people to 
maximize visibility); natural access control (through the judicial placement of 
entrances, exits, fencing, landscaping, and lighting); and territorial 
reinforcement (using buildings, fences, pavement, signs, and landscaping to 
express ownership). 

Crisis Management (CM). The measures taken to identify, acquire, and plan the 
use of resources needed to anticipate, prevent, and/or resolve a threat or act 
of terrorism. 

Critical assets. Those assets essential to the minimum operations of the 
organization, and to ensure the health and safety of the general public. 

Critical infrastructure. Primary infrastructure systems (e.g., utilities, 
telecommunications, transportation, etc.) whose incapacity would have a 
debilitating impact on the school's ability to function. 

D

Damage assessment. The process used to appraise or determine the number of 
injuries and deaths, damage to public and private property, and the status of 
key facilities and services (e.g., schools, hospitals and other health care 
facilities, fire and police stations, communications networks, water and 
sanitation systems, utilities, and transportation networks) resulting from a 
manmade or natural disaster. 

Data gathering panel. A local processing unit that retrieves, processes, stores, 
and/or acts on information in the field. Debris-catching system. Blast 
wallpaper, fragmentation blankets, or any similar system applied to the inside 
of a building's exterior walls. Debris-catching systems are often made of Kevlar 
or geotextile material and are designed to collect wall material debris in the 
event of an external explosion and to shield occupants from injuries. 

Decontamination. The reduction or removal of a chemical, biological, or 
radiological material from the surface of a structure, area, object, or person. 

Defense layer. Building design or exterior perimeter barriers intended to delay 
attempted forced entry. 

Defensive measures. Protective measures that delay or prevent attack on an asset 
or that shield the asset from weapons, explosives, and CBR effects. Defensive 
measures include site work and building design. 

Design Basis Threat (DBT). The threat (e.g., tactics and associated weapons, 
tools, or explosives) against which assets within a building must be protected 
and upon which the security engineering design of the school is based. 

Design constraint. Anything that restricts the design options for a protective 
system or that creates additional problems for which the design must compensate. 

Design opportunity. Anything that enhances protection, reduces requirements for 
protective measures, or solves a design problem. 

Design team. A group of individuals from various engineering and architectural 
disciplines responsible for the protective system design. 

Disaster. An occurrence of a natural catastrophe, technological accident, or 
human-caused event that has resulted in severe property damage, deaths, and/or 
multiple injuries. 

Domestic terrorism. The unlawful use, or threatened use, of force or violence by 
a group or individual based and operating entirely within the United States or 
Puerto Rico without foreign direction committed against persons or property to 
intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment 
thereof in furtherance of political or social objectives. 

Dose rate (radiation). A general term indicating the quantity (total or 
accumulated) of ionizing radiation or energy absorbed by a person or animal, per 
unit of time. 

Dosimeter. An instrument for measuring and registering total accumulated 
exposure to ionizing radiation. 

Duress alarm devices. Also known as panic buttons, these devices are designated 
specifically to initiate a panic alarm. 

E

Effective stand-off distance. A stand-off distance at which the required level 
of protection can be shown to be achieved through analysis or can be achieved 
through building hardening or other mitigating construction or retrofit. 

Electronic Entry Control Systems (EECS). Electronic devices that automatically 
verify authorization for a person to enter or exit a controlled area. 

Electronic Security System (ESS). An integrated system that encompasses interior 
and exterior sensors, closed circuit television systems for assessment of alarm 
conditions, 

Electronic Entry Control Systems, data transmission media, and alarm reporting 
systems for monitoring, control, and display of various alarm and system 
information. 

Emergency. Any natural or human-caused situation that results in or may result 
in substantial injury or harm to the population or substantial damage to or loss 
of property. 

Emergency Environmental Health Services. Services required to correct or improve 
damaging environmental health effects on humans, including inspection for food 
contamination, inspection for water contamination, and vector control; providing 
for sewage and solid waste inspection and disposal; cleanup and disposal of 
hazardous materials; and sanitation inspection for emergency shelter facilities. 

Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Services including personnel, facilities, and 
equipment required to ensure proper medical care for the sick and injured from 
the time of injury to the time of final disposition, including medical 
disposition within a hospital, temporary medical facility, or special care 
facility; release from the site; or declared dead. Further, Emergency Medical 
Services specifically include those services immediately required to ensure 
proper medical care and specialized treatment for patients in a hospital and 
coordination of related hospital services. 

Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The protected site from which state and local 
civil government officials coordinate, monitor, and direct emergency response 
activities during an emergency. 

Emergency Operations Plan (EOP). A document that describes how people and 
property will be protected in disaster and disaster threat situations; details 
who is responsible for carrying out specific actions; identifies the personnel, 
equipment, facilities, supplies, and other resources available for use in the 
disaster; and outlines how all actions will be coordinated. 

Emergency Public Information (EPI). Information that is disseminated primarily 
in anticipation of an emergency or at the actual time of an emergency and, in 
addition to providing information, frequently directs actions, instructs, and 
transmits direct orders. 

Entry control point. A continuously or intermittently manned station at which 
entry to sensitive or restricted areas is controlled. 

Equipment closet. A room where field control equipment such as data gathering 
panels and power supplies are typically located. 

Evacuation. Organized, phased, and supervised dispersal of people from dangerous 
or potentially dangerous areas. 

Evacuation, mandatory or directed. This is a warning to persons within the 
designated area that an imminent threat to life and property exists and 
individuals MUST evacuate in accordance with the instructions of local 
officials. 

Evacuation, spontaneous. Residents or citizens in the threatened areas observe 
an emergency event or receive unofficial word of an actual or perceived threat 
and, without receiving instructions to do so, elect to evacuate the area. Their 
movement, means, and direction of travel are unorganized and unsupervised. 

Evacuation, voluntary. This is a warning to persons within a designated area 
that a threat to life and property exists or is likely to exist in the immediate 
future. Individuals issued this type of warning or order are NOT required to 
evacuate; however, it would be to their advantage to do so. 

Evacuees. All persons removed or moving from areas threatened or struck by a 
disaster. 

Exclusion area. A restricted area containing a security interest. Uncontrolled 
movement permits direct access to the item. See controlled area and limited 
area. 

Exclusion zone. An area around an asset that has controlled entry with highly 
restrictive access. See controlled area. 

F

Federal Coordinating Officer (FCO). The person appointed by the FEMA Director to 
coordinate federal assistance in a Presidentially declared emergency or major 
disaster. Federal Response Plan (FRP). The FRP establishes a process and 
structure for the systematic, coordinated, and effective delivery of federal 
assistance to address the consequences of any major disaster or emergency. 

Fence protection. An intrusion detection technology that detects a person 
crossing a fence by various methods such as climbing, crawling, cutting, etc. 

Fence sensor. An exterior intrusion detection sensor that detects aggressors as 
they attempt to climb over, cut through, or otherwise disturb a fence. 

Field of view. The visible area in a video picture. 

First responder. Local police, fire, and emergency medical personnel who first 
arrive on the scene of an incident and take action to save lives, protect 
property, and meet basic human needs. 

Forced entry. Entry to a denied area achieved through force to create an opening 
in fence, walls, doors, etc., or to overpower guards. 

Fragment retention film (FRF). A thin, optically clear film applied to glass to 
minimize the spread of glass fragments when the glass is shattered. 

Frangible construction. Building components that are designed to fail to vent 
blast pressures from an enclosure in a controlled manner and direction. 

G

Glare security lighting. Illumination projected from a secure perimeter into the 
surrounding area, making it possible to see potential intruders at a 
considerable distance while making it difficult to observe activities within the 
secure perimeter. 

Glazing. A material installed in a sash, ventilator, or panes (e.g., glass, 
plastic, etc., including material such as thin granite installed in a curtain 
wall). 

Governor's Authorized Representative (GAR). The person empowered by the 

Governor to execute, on behalf of the State, all necessary documents for 
disaster assistance. 

H 
Hazard. A source of potential danger or adverse condition. 

Hazard mitigation. Any action taken to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk to 
human life and property from hazards. The term is sometimes used in a stricter 
sense to mean cost-effective measures to reduce the potential for damage to a 
facility or facilities from a disaster event. 

Hazardous material (HazMat). Any substance or material that, when involved in an 
accident and released in sufficient quantities, poses a risk to people's health, 
safety, and/or property. These substances and materials include explosives, 
radioactive materials, flammable liquids or solids, combustible liquids or 
solids, poisons, oxidizers, toxins, and corrosive materials. 

High-hazard areas. Geographic locations that, for planning purposes, have been 
determined through historical experience and vulnerability analysis to be likely 
to experience the effects of a specific hazard (e.g., hurricane, earthquake, 
hazardous materials accident, etc.), resulting in vast property damage and loss 
of life. 

High-risk target. Any material resource or facility that, because of mission 
sensitivity, ease of access, isolation, and symbolic value, may be an especially 
attractive or accessible terrorist target. 

Human-caused hazard. Human-caused hazards are technological hazards and 
terrorism. They are distinct from natural hazards primarily in that they 
originate from human activity. Within the military services, the term threat is 
typically used for human-caused hazard. See definitions of technological hazards 
and terrorism for further information. 

I

International terrorism. Violent acts or acts dangerous to human life that are a 
violation of the criminal laws of the United States or any state, or that would 
be a criminal violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the United 
States or any state. These acts appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce a 
civilian population, influence the policy of a government by intimidation or 
coercion, or affect the conduct of a government by assassination or kidnapping. 
International terrorist acts occur outside the United States, or transcend 
national boundaries in terms of the means by which they are accomplished, the 
persons they appear intended to coerce or intimidate, or the locale in which 
their perpetrators operate or seek asylum. 

Intrusion Detection System (IDS). The combination of components, including 
sensors, control units, transmission lines, and monitor units, integrated to 
operate in a specified manner. 

J

Jersey barrier. A protective concrete barrier initially and still used as a 
highway divider that now also functions as an expedient method for traffic speed 
control at entrance gates and to keep vehicles away from buildings. Laminated 
glass. A flat lite of uniform thickness consisting of two monolithic glass plies 
bonded together with an interlayer material as defined in Specification 
C1172. Many different interlayer materials are used in laminated glass. 

L

Landscaping. The use of plantings (shrubs and trees), with or without landforms 
and/or large boulders, to act as a perimeter barrier against defined threats. 

Layers of protection. A traditional approach in security engineering using 
concentric circles extending out from an area to be protected as demarcation 
points for different security strategies. 

Level of protection (LOP). The degree to which an asset is protected against 
injury or damage from an attack. 

Liaison. An agency official sent to another agency to facilitate interagency 
communications and coordination. 

Limited area. A restricted area within close proximity of a security interest. 
Uncontrolled movement may permit access to the item. Escorts and other internal 
restrictions may prevent access to the item. See controlled area and exclusion 
area. 

Line of sight (LOS). Direct observation between two points with the naked eye or 
hand-held optics. 

Line-of-sight sensor. A pair of devices used as an intrusion detection sensor 
that monitor any movement through the field between the sensors. 

Local government. Any county, city, village, town, district, or political 
subdivision of any state, and Indian tribe or authorized tribal organization, or 
Alaska Native village or organization, including any rural community or 
unincorporated town or village or any other public entity. 

M

Mail-bomb delivery. Bombs or incendiary devices delivered to the target in 
letters or packages. 

Minimum measures. Protective measures that can be applied to all buildings 
regardless of the identified threat. These measures offer defense or detection 
opportunities for minimal cost, facilitate future upgrades, and may deter acts 
of aggression. 

Mitigation. Those actions taken to reduce the exposure to and impact of an 
attack or disaster. 

Motion detector. An intrusion detection sensor that changes state based on 
movement in the sensor's field of view. 

Moving vehicle bomb. An explosive-laden car or truck driven into or near a 
building and detonated. 

Mutual Aid Agreement. A pre-arranged agreement developed between two or more 
entities to render assistance to the parties of the agreement. 

N

Natural hazard. Naturally-occurring events such as floods, earthquakes, 
tornadoes, tsunami, coastal storms, landslides, and wildfires that strike 
populated areas. A natural event is a hazard when it has the potential to harm 
people or property (FEMA 386- 2 Understanding Your Risks). The risks of natural 
hazards may be increased or decreased as a result of human activity; however, 
they are not inherently human-induced. 

Natural protective barriers. Natural protective barriers are mountains and 
deserts, cliffs and ditches, water obstacles, or other terrain features that are 
difficult to traverse. 

Non-exclusive zone. An area around an asset that has controlled entry, but 
shared or less restrictive access than an exclusive zone. 

Non-persistent agent. An agent that, upon release, loses its ability to cause 
casualties after 10 to 15 minutes. It has a high evaporation rate, is lighter 
than air, and will disperse rapidly. It is considered to be a short-term hazard; 
however, in small, unventilated areas, the agent will be more persistent. 

Nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons. Also called Weapons of Mass 
Destruction (WMD). Weapons that are characterized by their capability to produce 
mass casualties. 

P

Passive vehicle barrier. A vehicle barrier that is permanently deployed and does 
not require response to be effective. 

Perimeter barrier. A fence, wall, vehicle barrier, landform, or line of 
vegetation applied along an exterior perimeter used to obscure vision, hinder 
personnel access, or hinder or prevent vehicle access. 

Persistent agent. An agent that, upon release, retains its casualty producing 
effects for an extended period of time, usually anywhere from 30 minutes to 
several days. A persistent agent usually has a low evaporation rate and its 
vapor is heavier than air; therefore, its vapor cloud tends to hug the ground. 
It is considered to be a long-term hazard. Although inhalation hazards are still 
a concern, extreme caution should be taken to avoid skin contact as well. 

Physical security. The part of security concerned with measures/ concepts 
designed to safeguard personnel; to prevent unauthorized access to equipment, 
installations, materiel, and documents; and to safeguard them against espionage, 
sabotage, damage, and theft. 

Planter barrier. A passive vehicle barrier, usually constructed of concrete and 
filled with dirt (and flowers for aesthetics). Planters, along with bollards, 
are the usual street furniture used to keep vehicles away from existing 
buildings. Overall size and the depth of installation below grade determine the 
vehicle stopping capability of the individual planter. 

Plume. Airborne material spreading from a particular source; the dispersal of 
particles, gases, vapors, and aerosols into the atmosphere. 

Polycarbonate glazing. A plastic glazing material with enhanced resistance to 
ballistics or blast effects. 

Preliminary Damage Assessment (PDA). A mechanism used to determine the impact 
and magnitude of damage and the resulting unmet needs of individuals, 
businesses, the public sector, and the community as a whole. Information 
collected is used by the state as a basis for the Governor's request for a 
Presidential declaration, and by FEMA to document the recommendation made to the 
President in response to the Governor's request. PDAs are made by at least one 
state and one federal representative. A local government representative familiar 
with the extent and location of damage in the community often participates; 
other state and federal agencies and voluntary relief organizations also may be 
asked to participate, as needed. Preparedness. Establishing the plans, training, 
exercises, and resources necessary to enhance mitigation of and achieve 
readiness for response to, and recovery from all hazards, disasters, and 
emergencies, including WMD incidents. Primary asset. An asset that is the 
ultimate target for compromise by an aggressor. 

Primary gathering building. Inhabited buildings routinely occupied by 50 or more 
personnel. This designation applies to the entire portion of a building that 
meets the population density requirements for an inhabited building. 

Probability of detection (POD). A measure of an intrusion detection sensor's 
performance in detecting an intruder within its detection zone. 

Probability of intercept. The probability that an act of aggression will be 
detected and that a response force will intercept the aggressor before the asset 
can be compromised. 

Progressive collapse. A chain reaction failure of building members to an extent 
disproportionate to the original localized damage. Such damage may result in 
upper floors of a building collapsing onto lower floors. 

Protective barriers. Define the physical limits of a site, activity, or area by 
restricting, channeling, or impeding access and forming a continuous obstacle 
around the object. 

Protective measures. Elements of a protective system that protect an asset 
against a threat. Protective measures are divided into defensive and detection 
measures. 

Protective system. An integration of all of the protective measures required to 
protect an asset against the range of threats applicable to the asset. 

R

Radiation. High-energy particles or gamma rays that are emitted by an atom as 
the substance undergoes radioactive decay. Particles can be either charged alpha 
or beta particles or neutral neutron or gamma rays. 

Radiation sickness. The symptoms characterizing the sickness known as radiation 
injury, resulting from excessive exposure of the whole body to ionizing 
radiation. 

Radiological monitoring. The process of locating and measuring radiation by 
means of survey instruments that can detect and measure (as exposure rates) 
ionizing radiation. 

Recovery. The long-term activities beyond the initial crisis period and 
emergency response phase of disaster operations that focus on returning all 
systems in the community to a normal status or to reconstitute these systems to 
a new condition that is less vulnerable. 

Response. Executing the plan and resources identified to perform those duties 
and services to preserve and protect life and property as well as provide 
services to the surviving population. 

Restricted area. Any area with access controls that is subject to these special 
restrictions or controls for security reasons. See controlled area, limited 
area, exclusion area, and exclusion zone. 

Risk. The potential for loss of, or damage to, an asset. It is measured based 
upon the value of the asset in relation to the threats and vulnerabilities 
associated with it. 

Rotating drum or rotating plate vehicle barrier. An active vehicle barrier used 
at vehicle entrances to controlled areas based on a drum or plate rotating into 
the path of the vehicle when signaled. 

S

Sacrificial roof or wall. Roofs or walls that can be lost in a blast without 
damage to the primary asset. 

Safe haven. Secure areas within the interior of the facility. A safe haven 
should be designed such that it requires more time to penetrate by aggressors 
than it takes for the response force to reach the protected area to rescue the 
occupants. It may be a haven from a physical attack or an air-isolated haven 
from CBR contamination. 

Secondary asset. An asset that supports a primary asset and whose compromise 
would indirectly affect the operation of the primary asset. 

Secondary hazard. A threat whose potential would be realized as the result of a 
triggering event that of itself would constitute an emergency (e.g., dam failure 
might be a secondary hazard associated with earthquakes). 

Situational crime prevention. A crime prevention strategy based on reducing the 
opportunities for crime by increasing the effort required to commit a crime, 
increasing the risks associated with committing the crime, and reducing the 
target appeal or vulnerability (whether property or person). This opportunity 
reduction is achieved by management and use policies such as procedures and 
training, as well as physical approaches such as alteration of the built 
environment. 

Specific threat. Known or postulated aggressor activity focused on targeting a 
particular asset. 

Stand-off distance. A distance maintained between a building or portion thereof 
and the potential location for an explosive detonation or other threat. 

Stand-off weapons. Weapons such as anti-tank weapons and mortars that are 
launched from a distance at a target. 

State Coordinating Officer (SCO). The person appointed by the Governor to 
coordinate state, commonwealth, or territorial response and recovery activities 
with FRP-related activities of the Federal Government, in cooperation with the 
FCO. 

State Liaison. A FEMA official assigned to a particular state, who handles 
initial coordination with the state in the early stages of an emergency. 

Stationary vehicle bomb. An explosive-laden car or truck stopped or parked near 
a building. 

Structural protective barriers. Manmade devices (e.g., fences, walls, floors, 
roofs, grills, bars, roadblocks, signs, or other construction) used to restrict, 
channel, or impede access. 

Superstructure. The supporting elements of a building above the foundation. 

Supplies-bomb delivery. Bombs or incendiary devices concealed and delivered to 
supply or material handling points such as loading docks. 

T

Tactics. The specific methods of achieving the aggressor's goals to injure 
personnel, destroy assets, or steal materiel or information. 

Tangle-foot wire. Barbed wire or tape suspended on short metal or wooden pickets 
outside a perimeter fence to create an obstacle to approach. 

Taut wire sensor. An intrusion detection sensor utilizing a column of uniformly 
spaced horizontal wires, securely anchored at each end and stretched taut. Each 
wire is attached to a sensor to indicate movement of the wire. 

Technological hazards. Incidents that can arise from human activities such as 
manufacture, transportation, storage, and use of hazardous materials. For the 
sake of simplicity, it is assumed that technological emergencies are accidental 
and that their consequences are unintended. 

Terrorism. The unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to 
intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment 
thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives. 

Thermally tempered glass (TTG). Glass that is heat-treated to have a higher 
tensile strength and resistance to blast pressures, although with a greater 
susceptibility to airborne debris. 

Threat. Any indication, circumstance, or event with the potential to cause loss 
of, or damage to an asset. 

Threat analysis. A continual process of compiling and examining all available 
information concerning potential threats and human-caused hazards. A common 
method to evaluate terrorist groups is to review the factors of existence, 
capability, intentions, history, and targeting. 

TNT equivalent weight. The weight of TNT (trinitrotoluene) that has an 
equivalent energetic output to that of a different weight of another explosive 
compound. 

Tornado. A local atmospheric storm, generally of short duration, formed by winds 
rotating at very high speeds, usually in a counter-clockwise direction. The 
vortex, up to several hundred yards wide, is visible to the observer as a 
whirlpool-like column of winds rotating about a hollow cavity or funnel. Winds 
may reach 300 miles per hour or higher. 

Toxic-free area. An area within a facility in which the air supply is free of 
toxic chemical or biological agents. 

Toxicity. A measure of the harmful effects produced by a given amount of a toxin 
on a living organism. 

Triple-standard concertina (TSC) wire. This type of fence uses three rolls of 
stacked concertina. One roll will be stacked on top of two other rolls that run 
parallel to each other while resting on the ground, forming a pyramid. U

Unobstructed space. Space around an inhabited building without obstruction large 
enough to conceal explosive devices 150 mm (6 inches) or greater in height. 

V

Video motion detection. Motion detection technology that looks for changes in 
the pixels of a video image. 

Visual surveillance. The aggressor uses ocular and photographic devices (such as 
binoculars and cameras with telephoto lenses) to monitor facility or 
installation operations or to see assets. 

Volumetric motion sensor. An interior intrusion detection sensor that is 
designed to sense aggressor motion within a protected space. 

Vulnerability. Any weakness in an asset or mitigation measure than can be 
exploited by an aggressor (potential threat element), adversary, or competitor. 
It refers to the organization's susceptibility to injury. 

W

Warning. The alerting of emergency response personnel and the public to the 
threat of extraordinary danger and the related effects that specific hazards may 
cause. 

Watch. Indication in a defined area that conditions are favorable for the 
specified type of severe weather (e.g., flash flood watch, severe thunderstorm 
watch, tornado watch, tropical storm watch). 

Waterborne contamination. Chemical, biological, or radiological agent introduced 
into and fouling a water supply. 

Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). Any device, material, or substance used in a 
manner, in a quantity or type, or under circumstances showing an intent to cause 
death or serious injury to persons, or significant damage to property. An 
explosive, incendiary, or poison gas, bomb, grenade, rocket having a propellant 
charge of more than 4 ounces, or a missile having an explosive incendiary charge 
of more than 0.25 ounce, or mine or device similar to the above; poison gas; 
weapon involving a disease organism; or weapon that is designed to release 
radiation or radioactivity at a level dangerous to human life.