Scenario: Attack a Stadium
Scenario
Attack a Stadium to cause the deaths of 50,000 or more spectators.
Description
If a terrorist group wants to create a massive death toll, attacking a stadium would be one way to do it. In a large stadium filled to capacity, 50,000 or more spectators could die. Since the event being held at the stadium will be televised at the time of attack, the television audience will be able to witness the attack -- or at least know that something has gone seriously wrong at the stadium when the signal blacks out.
There are several different ways for the attack to unfold:
- The terrorists could park a large truck bomb outside the stadium and detonate it in the middle of the game.
- The terrorists could contaminate a ventilation system at an indoor stadium with chemical or biological agents.
- The terrorists could crash a jumbo jet or a private aircraft loaded with C-4 explosives into the center of the stadium.
Any of these attack scenarios would kill at least half of the spectators inside the stadium.
Damage Potential
Damage would come in three ways:
- Massive loss of life -- the death toll would be 10 to 20 times greater than that of the WTC disaster.
- Loss of the stadium -- Perhaps half a billion dollars in property damage, and many years to replace it. If the stadium is located in a densely populated area, there may also be collateral damage to surrounding buildings
- Loss of two professional sports teams
Potential Solutions
To prevent the three scenarios listed above, we can take the following steps:
- Prevent any un-inspected truck from approaching within a mile of the stadium. This means that barriers at the one-mile perimeter need to be truck-proof. A chain-link fence that a truck can drive through easily does not help -- the truck can speed through the fence at 50 MPH and explode when it reaches the stadium, before anyone has time to stop it.
- Clear the airspace around a stadium completely for 5 to 10 miles out, and have fighters in the air during any event.
- Chemical and biological attacks are more difficult to counter, but the technology is advancing quickly. In the ideal case, all stadiums would be equipped with sensors able to detect contaminants in the air, shut down the ventilation system and sound the alarm.
- Inspect everyone entering the facility for weapons and biological/chemical agents
- Use facial recognition software at all entryways in an attempt to spot known terrorists
- Perform background checks on all employees, particularly maintenance personnel and subcontractors working on the ventilation system, as they may be able to circumvent safety systems or place contaminants directly into the ventilation system
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