City To Examine Terror Defense

New York will serve as the testing ground for a federal program designed to protect cities from deadly terrorist attacks involving nuclear weapons.

The new initiative, proposed by the United States Department of Homeland Security, will levy $30 million to the city to examine new protective methods against radiological and nuclear terrorism.

Details of how the money will be spent on the program, called the "Securing the Cities" initiative, are not clear, but a portion will be used to purchase technology that can detect harmful radiation present in nuclear and "dirty" bombs, a spokeswoman for an agency of the Department of Homeland Security called the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, Jenny Burke, said. Money will also be used to train New York City police officers on how to operate the technology.

On Tuesday, police commissioner Raymond Kelly met with federal officials to discuss the program.