Mass transit is a prime target for terrorist attacks. In
this case we will be discussing attacks on the subway systems like those in New
York City, and the chances of it occurring. Let's begin.
Methods of attack: There are three primary weapons of
attack that can occur in a subway system like New York Cities. The first
in a chemical/biological attack. Such an attack has been used by the
radical cultist group Aum Shinrikyo in Tokyo's subway system, which used
homemade saran nerve gas. This demonstrated the potential of gas like
attacks in subway systems and how the tunnels allow the toxic gases to spread
rapidly throughout the entire subway system. Reason being is that a
subway is like a giant wind tunnel which carries any air from one part of the
tunnel to the other parts of the system with ease. Biological attacks
work in a similar method if airborne, but a single infected person with say the
flu, or Ebola can infect hundreds by merely staying in the system and just
coughing and sneezing on enough people for it to spread.
Attack type two is a bomb. It can be
just as devastating as a gas attack by it derailing a train car which can cause
numerous trains to collide. On top of this, it can paralyze a city’s
infrastructure for an extended period of time which in turn hurts the economy
as well. As such, you not only have to deal with dead bodies, but
transportation disruptions, and the possibility of people losing their jobs due
to the economic losses associated with the attack.
Finally we have the third and most
disturbing possibility. A run and gun style attack like what occurred in
Mumbai India could take hundreds of lives and send panicked people in the
subways into the streets creating traffic jams and trampling people. This
can then be taken advantage of by the attackers as their targets are now
bunching together and thus making for easier targets. If they combine
this method of attack with cheap pipe bombs, then you have a recipe for total
mayhem.
Possibilities: In the United States, the chances
of a chemical attack are limited due to the shear amount of resources involved
in making deadly toxins. As such, the police and the Federal authorities
will notice and hopefully be able to stop the incident before it occurs.
Biological attacks are easier though and thus even spreading the common
flu which kills thousands a year can be devastating. The other two
attacks (gunmen and bombs) are harder to accomplish, especially if you involve
more people in the attack. It requires coordination and timing. Not
to mention, the sheer amount of bullets and ammunition required would take
months to collect and distribute. The longer it takes for the terrorists
to set up an attack the more likely they are to be detected. However, it
is possible for this kind of attack to occur ( such as the Boston Marathon
Bombings) and thus we have to hope that the intelligence agencies and police
forces are on their toes and are able to react fast enough to stop the attacks.
Conclusion: We are always subject to an attack
by terrorists. This is a given fact in the world we live in today.
So the fact of the matter is, what are you going to do about it?
You can run and hide, take counter measures, or act like nothing is going
to happen and not let it affect you. I personally feel that I should just
educate myself on the subject just to be prepared for such an occurrence
happening. Otherwise I will live my life normally. I will not let
the terrorists win by changing my routines and behaviors for that is when they
win.
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