Austin’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management launches federal bombing prevention program

Austin’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM) is launching the Bomb-Making Materials Awareness Program (BMAP), a counter-terrorism risk management bombing prevention program with over 300 participants trained across cities in Texas that aims to restrict access by malicious actors to explosive precursor chemicals, explosive powders, exploding target materials, associated components, and delivery methods. The program will focus mainly on the prevention and risk management of domestic terrorism, aiming to monitor the acquisition of materials and the bomb-building stages by instructing HSEM staff to reach out to specific businesses in different industry sectors to teach them about the types of products they sell that can be used for homemade explosive devices. According to Ken Snipes, HSEM Director, this program will allow his office to increase capacity beyond emergency management response.