Eagle Pass Business Objectives
The Eagle Pass Port of Entry’s (POE) Business Resumption Table Top Exercise (TTX) was developed to test the trade and law enforcement stake holders’ ability to ensure the continuity of business, in the trade environment, in response to the suspension of commercial traffic affecting the Port of Eagle Pass. The exercise planning team was composed of one Chief CBP Officer and two Supervisory CBP Officers.
Based on the exercise planning team’s deliberations, the following objectives were developed for the Business Resumption TTX:
• Objective 1: Demonstrate the ability to establish and maintain a business continuity network amongst the trade and law enforcement stakeholders during a prolonged bridge closure.
The purpose of this report is to analyze
exercise results, identify strengths which the trade community can build upon, identify potential areas for improvement, and support development of corrective actions.
Major Strengths
The major strengths identified during this exercise are as follows:
• Cooperation between the participants
• Communication amongst the various stakeholders of the trade community was also very effective as protocols were in place to address a commercial traffic suspension incident whether natural or man-made.
Primary Areas for Improvement
The primary areas for improvement were identified as follows:
• Communication
The overall exercise was successful as participants shared their ideas on how they would address their agencies and customers’ needs as the result of an overturned tanker on the road leading to Camino Real International Bridge which in turn would affect commercial entries from crossing into Mexico. Major strengths identified were the communication and cooperation between participants, and the implementation of their own business resumption plan based on previous TTX conducted. Because of the suspension of commercial traffic affecting Camino Real International Bridge, participants stated traffic could be rerouted to the nearby ports of Laredo and/or Del Rio. The Office of Field Operations (OFO) would enact their Business Resumption plan to include augmenting their staff and resources to the nearby ports.
Communication was identified as a major strength, it is also an area for improvement. Should the suspension of commercial traffic occur as a result of an overturned tanker, it is important for all trade stakeholders to be advised of OFO’s initiation of a business resumption plan in order for them to advise their customers. The notification of their customers would in turn assist with the decision to either “wait it out” or seek alternative routes of entry such as Laredo and/or Del Rio.
Based on the exercise planning team’s deliberations, the following objectives were developed for the Business Resumption TTX:
• Objective 1: Demonstrate the ability to establish and maintain a business continuity network amongst the trade and law enforcement stakeholders during a prolonged bridge closure.
The purpose of this report is to analyze
exercise results, identify strengths which the trade community can build upon, identify potential areas for improvement, and support development of corrective actions.
Major Strengths
The major strengths identified during this exercise are as follows:
• Cooperation between the participants
• Communication amongst the various stakeholders of the trade community was also very effective as protocols were in place to address a commercial traffic suspension incident whether natural or man-made.
Primary Areas for Improvement
The primary areas for improvement were identified as follows:
• Communication
The overall exercise was successful as participants shared their ideas on how they would address their agencies and customers’ needs as the result of an overturned tanker on the road leading to Camino Real International Bridge which in turn would affect commercial entries from crossing into Mexico. Major strengths identified were the communication and cooperation between participants, and the implementation of their own business resumption plan based on previous TTX conducted. Because of the suspension of commercial traffic affecting Camino Real International Bridge, participants stated traffic could be rerouted to the nearby ports of Laredo and/or Del Rio. The Office of Field Operations (OFO) would enact their Business Resumption plan to include augmenting their staff and resources to the nearby ports.
Communication was identified as a major strength, it is also an area for improvement. Should the suspension of commercial traffic occur as a result of an overturned tanker, it is important for all trade stakeholders to be advised of OFO’s initiation of a business resumption plan in order for them to advise their customers. The notification of their customers would in turn assist with the decision to either “wait it out” or seek alternative routes of entry such as Laredo and/or Del Rio.