Oct. 10, 2001 – The St. Thomas offices of the V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency were evacuated Tuesday morning after authorities learned that vandals had been on the roof of the building housing the government's emergency operations center.
The evacuation was a precaution, a VITEMA official said. It was found that unidentified persons had begun to sever communication cables on the roof of the AQ Building across from Nisky Center, where the VITEMA offices are located.
After another tenant in the building reported seeing "persons on the roof," VITEMA's director, Harold Baker, said, "we surveyed the area and found the cut cables."
The vandalism did not interrupt VITEMA operations, he said, but did trigger intensified security procedures in place as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the mainland. "We are not disabled," he emphasized. "We are fully functional, despite the damage to communication equipment."
According to Baker, "Wireless lines and satellite communication cables" were cut, "and other tenants in the building were also affected by the vandalism to the cables."
The stepped-up security means that public access to the VITEMA facilities "will be a bit more restricted," Baker said. "We no longer will allow tours of the building and will look at all areas of the security system and make changes as we see fit."
The vandalism followed Monday’s telephoned bomb threats against hotels and the official residence of the governor. Security personnel found no bombs.