Navy Secretary Ray Mabus on Tuesday ordered all Navy and Marine Corps facilities, including Naval Submarine Base New London, to conduct a full review of whether mandated security measures are in place and whether more are needed.
“Our sailors, Marines and civilians are familiar with the dangers of service, but our security is something we can never take for granted,” Mabus said.
The security crackdown was ordered after a lone gunman on Monday opened fire inside Washington’s Navy Yard, killing 12 people and injuring several others.
The shooter, who also died, was identified as Aaron Alexis, 34, of Fort Worth, Texas. He was a former Navy reservist and a Hewlett-Packard subcontractor with a valid pass for the base.
According to a Navy officer, the first part of the review will be an inspection of all Navy and Marine Corps installations “to ensure that physical security standards currently in place are being maintained.”
“Then there will be a larger review of physical security to ensure correct security requirement are being implemented,” the Navy officer said.
The public information office at Naval Submarine Base New London said it could not comment on efforts at the base “because we don’t’ discuss specifics of any security question.”
Mabus’ efforts to increase security at naval facilities also comes as leaked reports from a soon-to-be-released Navy audit determined that efforts to cut costs in the face of budget cuts resulted in increased security risks at bases.
The report said at least 52 felons gained unauthorized access to military installations.