It holds the potential to cripple Congress and leave the United States government shut down for months. The solution is simple. But that simple solution would cost a special interest some extra money. So this hole in national security has never been plugged.
A New York Times editorial calls this bridge, at 2nd & E Streets, SW, in Washington, DC, "the weakest point in America's defense against terrorism."
It's just four blocks from the US Capitol. And the rail traffic across it includes tank cars loaded with deadly chlorine. A single, 90-ton tanker, hit with explosives, rocket propelled grenades, or a truck bomb at this bridge could put the lives of a quarter million federal workers—and every member of Congress—in danger.
A History of Chlorine Gas
"As flames rose from the Pentagon and another plane neared Washington, managers of the region's largest sewage treatment plant had a chilling realization: Their facility across the Potomac River housed 10 rail cars of toxic chemicals, and the rupture of even one would kill thousands within minutes. "
"When antiterrorism experts try to predict what could happen in the next 9/11 attack, the dispersal of deadly chemicals is at or near the top of their list. An assault on a chemical plant or a rail car filled with chemicals would turn another unremarkable part of the infrastructure into a powerful instrument of death. An attack on a single rail tanker filled with chlorine could kill or seriously harm 100,000 people in less than an hour.
Because of its location in the middle of official Washington, a chlorine leak from a rail tanker on the bridge at Second Street could endanger much of the federal government, including Congress and the Supreme Court."
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Article comments
1 - Bennett
Facinating, and chilling. What does the DHS have to say about a target as obvious as this one, I wonder?
2 - gonzo marx
same as they do all the rest of the seriously dangerous soft targets, Bennett
nothing
not a blessed thing has been done..and pledges about border security have been tossed aside as well
i'm in such a state at the moment, that a carbine with scope and a policy of not letting anyone near my land is about all i can manage
that would be almost funny if i was joking
Excelsior?
3 - Bennett
I'm with you. Adding firepower, keeping the head down, and thanking the circumstances that led me to me living away from most "soft targets".
I know that I don't fit "the profile", but it really is too damn easy to get across the border. Went to Montreal last week. Hit the border on the way back, showed a driver's license, declared $40 worth of random purchases, and away I went.
Could have had guns, explosives, hell even a terrorist or two in my trunk...
And that was the primary customs between Quebec and say, Boston. The smaller crossings are much less formal.
Will we learn?
4 - DrPat
Blogger pictures are not displaying. This is typical - they simply go away after a while. May I suggest hosting your images on another site?
At least, add alternate text and a click-through link so people who want to see the images can go to the blogspot where they are visible.
5 - Dave Nalle
In this case I think the problem may be the spaces in the image names. I emailed Terry about it.
Good post, btw.
Dave
6 - Terry Turner
Thanks for the heads up on the pictures/blogger problem. I'll keep that in mind for future crossposts.
Give me some time to get the shots hosted somewhere else and I'll get you the links.
7 - Dave Nalle
It's lovely now. Thanks for fixing it.
As for the meat of the article, you would think that with the direct threat which this situation poses to Capitol Hill and the people on it, this would be the highest priority among legislators, yet they seem completely oblivious.
Dave