Rail Tunnel Securty

Rail Tunnel Security
An article on the vulnerability of our rail tunnlels and what if one was bombed. Not a pretty picture.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8736456/

Yipes!

Rail tunnels also are important conduits of commerce and for telecommunications cables. The Stevens Pass tunnel in the Cascade Mountains is the gateway for virtually all rail freight from the Port of Seattle to Chicago.

Oh goody, and I trust the federal government? Like politics won’t play into this.

So, in short, to stop all rail traffic to / from the West Coast how many lines would they have to cut and how hard would it be?


//I hope this is not deamed too political.

 

Great, another weakness identified for our enemies. Why dont they just tell them which tunnels are the weakest, least guarded, and would cause the most problems if eliminated.

 

I expect because they figure that our enemies have already done their homework.

 

Did the big dig tunnel get extra security or screening post 9/11? I would think screening would be a nightmare for 10 lanes of traffic.

 

I agree. By the time the newspapers print it, any enemies are probably using a red ink pen to correct the article.

 

I think you have to understand what terrorism is all about before you assess the objectives the T's may have. The biggest thing that is in their objectives is >>>Terror<<<. I.e. Destabalizing the society they are attacking. Lets say a T cell decides to attack only Super markets. It will disrupt business and people will be fairly nervous about going shopping. So something like rail targets , though it's a hassle and could potentially kill a bunch of people, is probably not as good a target as something like city parks, or playgrounds. Something that is a part of everyones life.

I bet most of the anti terrorist work is being done undercover by people who are simply doing things like recording cafe conversations and monitoring who hangs out with who.

Remember, we had all the terrorists that were part of 911 under survellience at some point or another. We failed by not considering just how lethal they could be. Somewhere somehow, someone didn't think, "gee terrorists trying to learn to fly, how strange"

Europe has had terrorrism since the 60's. Infact one could argue that terrorism was invented by the Pre isreal stern gangs that did things like attack British nationals. Or we could go farther back and realize that perhaps our founding fathers were terrorists. oh oh lets not go there. lol

The main thing is to trust that our guys are doing their job undercover and not let it get you down. You have to have faith in our counter terrorism.

On the bright side, more people die from smoking cigarettes each year than a whole years worth of terrorist attacks. Maybe we should be putting cigarette execs in prison too.

 

As far as disrupting the national infrastructure, a rural railroad (not subway) tunnel would not be a very good target. What would be the worst thing that could happen.

An explosion goes off inside the tunnel. Hundreds of tons of rock collapse the tunnel (if the terrorist have enough explosives). The railroad comes in and removes the rock, replace the track and its business as normal - except now they can fit larger loads through the tunnel. It wouldn't have much impact on the overall system.

If it was done in an urban area, the situation would be similar to what happened in Baltimore (I think) a few years ago when the tunnel caught fire.

Logistically speaking, it would be very difficult for terrorist to set off a bomb big enough to cause any substantial damage inside a tunnel. They would need a large vehicle filled with explosives. and it would be difficult to get that vehicle in place without being detected or damaged by train traffic.

Let the flames fly,

Eric

 

Taking us even farther off the train subject....

(I babble on here way too much lol I decided to delete my post)

tee hee hee

[ July 29, 2005, 05:20 PM: Message edited by: traingeekboy ]

 

"On the bright side, more people die from smoking cigarettes each year than a whole years worth of terrorist attacks. Maybe we should be putting cigarette execs in prison too."

I agree geeky but, more people die from car accidents than smoking, maybe we should throw all the car maker execs in jail as well. These both are related to choice, you dont have to drive or smoke. I still prefer freedom of choice to utopian ideas of grandeur.

Back on topic, the govt. has an untapped pool of eyes and ears that could be used to keep tabs on suspicious activty for the rail system. Their called rail fans, but the rail industry see's us as an liability instead of an asset. It's just a waste.