Scenario: Destroy the Fort Peck DamScenario Using explosives, destroy the Fort Peck dam in Montana in order to cause massive destruction downstream. Description By blowing up a dam -- a relatively simple terrorist attack -- terrorists unleash the destructive force of the water behind the dam. That destructive force may manifest itself over several days, depending on the location of the dam. This is what makes dams such inviting terrorist targets. The Fort Peck scenario was originally suggested by Thomas Frey several years ago. In this scenario, terrorists attack the earthen dam in Fort Peck, Montana. This dam is 21,000 feet long, with a maximum height of 250 feet. The lake behind the dam ranks fifth in size among man-made lakes in the United States. The lake has a maximum capacity of nearly 19 million acre-feet of water -- almost 6 trillion gallons. There is a hydro-electric power plant at the dam that generates approximately 200 megawatts of electrical power. This map shows the location of the lake. On this map you can see the dam itself. This page shows a picture of the dam and its cross-section. It is a recreational lake, meaning that the dam is vulnerable to attack by truck, boat or underwater. It is thought that terrorists could use relatively small underwater charges planted along the dam to destroy it. A nuclear suitcase bomb would certainly destroy it. Once the dam is destroyed, its 6 trillion gallons of water would begin flowing down stream. This is where the multiplying effect takes hold. A timeline would look something like this:
Damage Potential In this attack, millions of acres would be flooded. Dozens of towns and a number of major cities would be destroyed. The death toll would likely exceed 100,000. Millions of people would survive but would be left homeless. Countless power plants, refineries, bridges and so on would be lost. The nation would be essentially bisected, because all infrastructure along the Mississippi river (roads, train tracks, electrical lines, pipelines are so on) would be destroyed by the flood. It is difficult to put a dollar figure on the damage, but it would easily reach into the tens of trillions of dollars. It would take the nation many years -- potentially several decades -- to completely recover from the attack.. Potential Solutions There are two questions to ask about a scenario of this magnitude:
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