CISA’s Office for Bombing Prevention (OBP) recently announced the addition of two new training classes to its suite of Independent Study Training (IST) Courses. The new classes, “Suspicious Activity Recognition for Bombing Prevention” and “High-Risk Explosives Sweep,” are available online, free of charge, and self-paced. 

The first course, Suspicious Activity Recognition for Bombing Prevention (AWR-943), is a 60-minute online course providing participants with the knowledge and skills to identity suspicious activity for bombing prevention related to a facility/system or planned or unplanned event. The primary audience consists of federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial (FSLTT) public safety and security professionals as well as others who have responsibility for risk management and safety planning in communities and facilities.

The second course, High-Risk Explosives Sweep (PER-939), is a 90-minute online course offering participants foundational knowledge of explosive sweep protocols and an opportunity to practice high-risk explosive sweep techniques in a large facility, area, or route. The intended audience for this course is public safety bomb squads, DOD Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) units, first responders, and professional security personnel. To register, participants can visit Office for Bombing Prevention (dhs.gov). Select the “Online Training” tab and then the “apply” button. A FEMA Student Identification (SID) number and Password are required to apply. If you don’t have a FEMA SID, one can be obtained by going to: https://cdp.dhs.gov/femasid/register. 

For registration issues, contact OBP Training Support at the CDP at: obp-support@cdpemail.dhs.gov or (256) 847-2195 during business hours.

For questions, contact OBP Training at OBPTraining@cisa.dhs.gov with any questions. Register for the new online courses here.

Given the frequent sharing of tactical guidance on how to manufacture explosives, WaterISAC encourages its members to consider the risks of violent extremists employing explosives in attacks on their infrastructure and plan accordingly. Last year, for instance, a malicious actor in California used explosives to attack and destroy two electrical transformers, causing power outages to the local community. For resources on bomb threat mitigation, WaterISAC encourages members to visit the DHS Office of Bombing Prevention (OBP). Its mission is to help organizations prepare for, assess, and respond to a bomb threat and with that goal it offers multiple free products, training courses, and resources. Additionally, WaterISAC hosted a briefing with OBP in July – the recording and presentation are available here.