Associated Press
November 6, 2010
The skies of Staten Island are still illuminated by the fire at the Howland Hook Shipping Facility this morning. Last night, a joint task force consisting of the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and members of New York's FRONTLINE branch acted on intelligence that led them to the terrorist organization Messiah's base of operations.
This intelligence was gathered from painstaking weeks of analyzing alleged Messiah coordinator Rupert Carmichael's personal finances, discovering his funding of two notable construction sites. One, an abandoned tenement building on Manhattan, the other the facility on Staten Island that is now destroyed.
According to the DHS report, a response team was sent in to apprehend the members of Messiah, headed by Secretary Matthew Parkman. Two FRONTLINE members, Juliette Wright and Adelle Sanderson were present during the altercation that swiftly turned violent as Messiah resisted Homeland's authority.
While details are sketchy, DHS Operations Director Jason Pierce explains that it is believed members of Messiah on site activated planted C4 charges around the facility, causing the entire compound to be demolished with the Messiah members inside rather than be taken captive for their crimes.
It is unknown how many members of Messiah were killed in the blast, but at least 28 officers of the Department of Homeland Security were killed, with eight more critically injured. Both Wright and Sanderson from FRONTLINE were killed when they were caught in the blast, and DHS operative Desmond Harper was likewise injured when he heroically attempted to save Secretary Parkman from a hand-tossed explosive device.
Memorial services for the lost members of the Department of Homeland Security and FRONTLINE are expected to be held later in the week. While DHS was unwilling to confirm whether this would put an end to the Messiah terrorist organization's violence, Operations Director Pierce did say that the lives lost in this operation were not ones lost in vain.
He went on to say, "The brave men and women who gave their lives defending New York City and America from terrorism will be forever remembered as the heroes they are."
More on this story as it develops.