The NY Times reports: The agency in charge of New York’s subway system did not adequately prepare its staff to handle a new plan for responding to fires, crimes and other emergencies, potentially leaving riders at risk, according to a report by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

After a budget squeeze in the spring led to the disbanding of a dedicated emergency response team, officials at the agency, New York City Transit, failed to establish clear procedures for employees who were expected to take up the task of coordinating with other city agencies during emergencies, according to the report. A copy of the report, which was prepared by the authority’s inspector general and is expected to be released this week, was obtained by The New York Times.

Although the transit agency, a division of the M.T.A., has since clarified the procedures, the inspector general’s criticisms are the latest blemish on a spotty record dating to the 1990s, when fire, police and other city officials first raised concerns about poor communication and sluggish response times by the subway’s management.

A dedicated team of emergency managers was installed in early 2008 after an incident in which it took more than an hour for a liaison from the transit agency to arrive at a fire in a Brooklyn subway tunnel. The team won praise but was deemed unnecessary by officials this year as part of an overhaul of how the subways are managed.

Since March, the transit agency has relied on a rotating cast of veteran managers to coordinate any emergency response. Like doctors on call at a hospital, the managers cover shifts during which they communicate with police and fire officials less familiar with the challenges of working in the subway system.

But The Times reported in June that those managers had not received additional training or a refresher on emergency protocols, unlike the team they had replaced.

Officials at New York City Transit, in a response to the inspector general’s report, acknowledged that they could have better trained the new emergency managers. But they insisted that any confusion would be worked out over time and that riders’ safety was never in doubt.

In interviews over the summer, managers gave investigators inconsistent descriptions of the proper procedures in an emergency, including whether employees should communicate with rescue workers at the site or remotely. The agency also did not appear to have enough equipment on hand for all the designated responders, including radios to speak with police and fire officials, the investigators found.

Barry L. Kluger, the inspector general, recommended that the agency designate a new central coordinator who would oversee all emergency planning. In an interview, he said that staff memos were an inadequate training method.

(Source: NY Times)