Operation: Papal Protection
NJ Transit Local 304 succeeded in its epic mission
to oversee Pope Francis’ U.S. tour
■ BY JOSHUA SIGMUND
Holy moly…
What else would law enforcement officers say when tasked with
protecting arguably the most well-known person on the planet for
his first U.S. visit?
For members of NJ Transit Local 304 – the same Local that ran
operations during Super Bowl XLVIII at MetLife Stadium in 2014 –
however, making sure Pope Francis stayed out of harm’s way while
maintaining the interstate arteries that shuttle a million people in,
out and across New Jersey every day was just another challenge to
overcome.
“The Super Bowl was a big thing; this was global,” recognized
Local 304 Vice-President Chris Truppa about the palpable weight of
the world’s eyes upon New Jersey and its neighbors during the
Pope’s Sept. 22-27 visit. “Any time we put together an operation as
big as this one, there’s a different feel to it, but we’re not new to this.
We deal with sports teams, celebrities, presidential details, moving
of dignitaries; but here we’re working to secure one of the most popular people in the world and he likes to be up close and personal
with the crowd including the homeless. We’re tasked with making
sure not only his safety is taken care of, but also taking care of business as usual.”
During the Pope’s visit, there were also two football games at
MetLife Stadium, one at Rutgers University, a free concert in Central
Park and the UN General Assembly meeting.
“People rely on our system for all these venues and, in today’s day
and age of terrorism, there’s a big focus to make sure the people
using our system feel safe,” Truppa added. “But it’s nothing new for
us; we can handle it with our guys who are well-trained.”
Well-trained and well-prepared, that is.
In fact, it was soon after the Super Bowl that the likelihood of Pope
Francis visiting the area presented itself. In March of this year, tangible preparations began. Even though his trip only included stops
in Washington D.C., New York City and Philadelphia – and flying
over, rather than driving through, New Jersey – the Pope’s presence
in the latter two border cities ensured that the Garden State would
undoubtedly be affected.
And even though the Pontiff was never going to be in New Jersey,
his presence was still going to be felt here. For example, when Pope
Francis held Mass at Madison Square Garden, the sub-adjacent
New York Penn Station became a potential target.
Every train going to Penn Station was boarded with a large contingent of NJ Transit officers who would walk on and look around.
In some cases, K-9s and even the Essex County Sheriff’s Office Bomb
Squad Unit was there to help.
www.njcopsmagazine.com
■
OCTOBER 2015
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