Local companies are still assessing what the impact will be on their international business dealings after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Arlington, Va.
But transportation delays due to heightened security measures in response to the terrorist attacks have already affected local businesses.
After the attacks, rumors circulated locally that the border between San Diego and Mexico was closed for some part of the morning Sept. 11. In actuality, security at the border was elevated to the highest level. Every vehicle crossing the border was searched before making its way past border officials.
The wait at the San Ysidro border crossing averaged two hours, according to Vince Bond, public affairs officer for the U.S. Customs Service in San Diego. On a typical weekday morning, because of additional officers added at peak times at the border entries, wait times have been about 20 minutes around 9:30 and 10 a.m., Bond said.
Wait times for pedestrians has averaged about 30 minutes with Level 1 security measures in place.
“Now we’re paying much more attention to every pedestrian, cargo conveyance and passenger vehicle,” Bond said.
The port of entry at San Ysidro was closed for two hours Sept. 11, due to a bomb threat that was called in to border offices. The San Diego Police Department assisted in a security sweep of the facilities in San Ysidro.
According to Laura Mack, a spokeswoman for the Immigration and Naturalization Service in San Diego, the border was closed between 8:36 p.m. and 10:18 p.m. on Tuesday night while facilities were evacuated and bomb-sniffing dogs scoured the area, finding nothing.
‘The Price We Pay’
John Riley, board member of the Western Maquiladora Trade Association and president of VerTek International Inc. in San Diego, said many Americans who were in Mexico immediately after the terrorist attacks attempted to cross the border right away, for fear that the border would be closed.
Riley did not attempt to cross the border until Sept. 12, when he was sure the border would not be closed and he wouldn’t end up stuck in Mexico.
Riley said there were no delays going into Mexico, but he waited an hour in the commuter lane when he returned to San Diego on Wednesday, instead of the usual two or three minutes.
“It’s the price we pay for today’s conditions,” he added. “Shipments will be impacted. If they’re letting people cross, they’re going to take their time checking the shipments. Our company keeps just a few days of inventory (of parts in Mexico). Product going to our customers is needed when we ship it.”
At its maquiladora in Tijuana, VerTek manufactures semiconductors for telecommunications, circuit boards for private and military use, and some just-in-time products for the automotive industry.
VerTek customers who had planned to visit San Diego this week began to look into transportation by train or automobile, as the Federal Aviation Administration closed airports across the country until Thursday, when most airlines resumed limited service.
“It appears cargo is moving well in both directions (across the border),” Riley said. Products and parts sent by air are of more concern to VerTek, which transports many parts and products between its operations in San Diego and Pennsylvania, he said.
Assessing Long-Term Impact
In Downtown San Diego, the San Diego World Trade Center was open for business on the day of the attacks with tighter security measures in place.
Kathy Ward, president of the local World Trade Center, said employees had to show identification in order to enter the building and an extra security guard was on duty.
The San Diego World Trade Center staff was thinking of their colleagues in New York City on Sept. 11.
“I know the president of the association was interviewed and he didn’t know about his staff,” Ward said. The World Trade Center offices were on the 77th floor of one of the twin towers, she said.
“What the long-term impact of this is, I don’t know,” Ward said. “I think more people will be appalled by (the attacks) than supportive of it in the world.”
Ward said it might still be too early to know the impact on commerce, aside from the logistical difficulties involved in getting planes back in the air after being grounded by the FAA.
“Until the markets open and we see who’s going to be buying what around the world, it’s difficult to gauge the reaction,” she said.
At Sony Electronics’ San Diego office, spokeswoman Irene Balli-Dumas said it is simply too early to say what the impact of the events will be on the company’s business, especially because of the closure of the U.S. markets.
In the United States, financial markets were closed to trading beginning on Tuesday. Bond trading resumed Thursday and equity trading was expected to begin Sept. 17.
Trading overseas continued, with some steep dives in European and Asian markets on Wednesday. By the end of the day Thursday, most markets had recovered some steady ground. Overall, insurance companies on Thursday recovered some ground lost on Wednesday, but most airline stocks declined.
London’s FTSE 100 ended Thursday 1.3 percent higher than the previous day. The pan-European Eurotop 100 was .9 percent lower. The European Central Bank left interest rates at 4.25 percent.
After a dive on Wednesday to a level unseen since 1983, Japan’s Nikkei Index closed up 2.99 percent on Thursday. Technology stocks rebounded, but companies selling heavily in the United States fell. The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong increased by .8 percent Thursday after a 9 percent fall on Wednesday.
The Customs Service’s Bond was in Washington, D.C., for a conference for public affairs officials during the week of Sept. 10, which was canceled after the attacks. Because of airport closures, he was unsure when he’d be coming home.
“It was really something here in Washington (on Tuesday). It was a momentous occasion,” he said.
