The SitCen is Transport Canada's emergency operations center (EOC), originally constructed to deal with earthquakes along the British Columbia Coast. It had been used several times prior to September 11, 2001, including the January 1998 North American ice storm and after Swissair Flight 111 crashed off the coast from Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia on September 2, 1998. As personnel staffed the SitCen, key organizations such as NAV CANADA, the Department of National Defence, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), and Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) were also involved in SitCen operations. One of the tasks of the SitCen was to maintain contact with other members of the Canadian aviation community, such as the Air Transport Association of Canada and local airport authorities. Their counterparts in the FAA (United States) and other international civil aviation authorities were also kept apprised.