The federal government has assigned Boston’s Tall Ships festival this weekend a “special event assessment rating 1” — a security designation typically reserved for high-risk events like presidential inaugurations and Super Bowls — after a rash of recent terrorist attacks abroad put authorities on alert.
Dozens of local, state and federal agencies including the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and Coast Guard will patrol Boston during this weekend’s festivities after DHS agreed recently to give the event a “SEAR 1” rating, Patrick McMurray, Massachusetts’ undersecretary for homeland security, told the Boston Globe on Tuesday.
“We’re using all the tools we can to keep the citizens safe and be reasonable,” said Mr. McMurray, who formerly served 25 years in the U.S. Secret Service.
State and city officials discussed their preparations during a Wednesday afternoon press conference and told the estimated 3 million individuals planning on attending the Rendez-Vous 2017 Tall Ships Regatta and Sail Boston Festival this weekend to expect heightened security measures including an increased police presence and the use of heavy machinery vehicles to block roadways and other restricted areas.
Boston Police Commissioner Bill Evans acknowledged that authorities aren’t aware of any specific threats involving this weekend’s event, but are acting out of an abundance of caution.
“I know a lot of people are worried about the SEAR 1 rating, but that was done months ago and is more about the complexity of the event,” he said Wednesday, as well as the international nature of the event: ships and dignitaries from 20 nations are expected to participate in this weekend’s event in addition to the millions of expected spectators from Boston and beyond.
“I really want to stress that there’s no threats,” he added.
No event in Boston has warranted as significant of a security operation in the years since the city hosted the Democratic National Convention in 2004 —including the handful of races the city has held in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, the Globe reported.
Nationwide, fewer than 10 events this year have been categorized as SEAR 1, Mr. Murray told the newspaper. After recent attacks in the U.K. and elsewhere, however, federal authorities were inclined to step up security in anticipation of this weekend’s event, the newspaper reported.
Federal homeland security officials “provided both personnel and other law enforcement resources to ensure a safe and secure event,” Lieutenant Michael McCarthy, a Boston police spokesman, told the Globe.
In addition to DHS resources, the entirety of the Boston Police Department as well as the the U.S. Coast Guard and Massachusetts State Police will work to secure this weekend’s event, the Globe reported. A central operations room, meanwhile, will be manned by nearly 50 people from 40 agencies, according to the newspaper, including members of the FBI, DHS, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and National Weather Service, among others.
Over 50 tall ships from 20 countries are slated to arrive Saturday in Boston — the only U.S. race port during the Rendez-Vous 2017 Tall Ships Regatta. The race began in the U.K. in April and has a week-long stopover in Boston before vessels set sail for Quebec City, Canada and ultimately Le Havre, France.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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