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120 Cities Most at Risk [Surviving Terrorism]
Surviving Terrorism.com ^ | 2-10-03 | Jarret B. Wollstein

Posted on 02/10/2003 9:41:40 AM PST by Salvation

120 Cities Most at Risk
Of Terrorist Attacks

For the past few years, the federal government has been providing training and assistance to police and emergency response workers in the 120 cities considered most at risk of terrorist attacks. A complete list of those cities appears at the end of this report.

As you will see, the list includes major government centers (Philadelphia, Miami, Sacramento, Washington, D.C.), cities with extensive industry (Detroit, Houston, San Jose), major business centers (Chicago, Miami, Philadelphia), important media centers (New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C.), major seaports (Newport News, Oakland, San Diego, Tampa), and important military facilities (Colorado Springs, Honolulu, Long Beach, Norfolk, San Francisco).

The federal government is providing extensive training for police and emergency workers in these 120 cities, including preparation for conventional (e.g., bomb), biological, chemical, and radiological (“dirty bomb”) attacks. However ...

Are the “At Risk Cities” Now Prepared?

The short answer is no, they are not. So if you live in or within 50 miles of these cities, you should consider yourself at significant risk for the duration of the War on Terror, which President Bush says could last as long as 50 years.

Fifty miles should be considered the minimal safe distance from an “at risk” city. The reason is that in event of even a small radiological or nuclear attack (5-20 kiloton weapon), lethal radiation and fallout will be carried by prevailing winds at least that far. In plain English, if the winds are blowing away from you, you will probably survive if you are 10-20 miles away. However, if winds are blowing toward you, you will probably be dead in a few days. Similarly, in event of a major biological attack, winds and fleeing survivors could easily carry pathogens at least 50 miles.

In the event a more serious attack, you may need to be as much as 100-300 miles away from a target city to survive.

While the government is now attempting to train emergency personnel in the 120 cities at greatest risk, please recognize it will take many years before most cities are even minimally prepared. Even then, government assistance is absolutely no guarantee that there will be enough drugs, water and food to go around for everyone in the event of a radiological, nuclear, or biological attack, which could put hundreds of thousands, even millions of people at risk. In many cases, the consequences will be nationwide.

Furthermore, there are many biological weapons for which no effective treatments exist, and the only protection is to not be anywhere in the area when people are exposed, and to get out before you and your family are exposed.

Also, in a crisis, expect emergency facilities—including hospitals and medical clinics —to be quickly overwhelmed. In fact, they are likely to be reservoirs of disease and contagion.

Dark Winter: What to Expect in the
Event of a Bioterrorist Attack

On June 22-23, 2001, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) conducted what they term “a senior-level war game” examining the likely consequences of a smallpox outbreak in the U.S. Again, let me emphasis this is an exercise based on high-level computer analysis and prediction, not an actual occurrence.

The results were alarming: During the exercise, smallpox was projected to spread to 25 states and 15 foreign countries. By the 13th day of the exercise, “A total of 16,000 smallpox cases have been reported in 25 states.” But that’s just the beginning.

By the end of the exercise, the National Security Council projects “that in worst-case conditions, the third generation of cases could conceivably comprise as many as 3,000,000 cases of smallpox and lead to as many as 1,000,000 deaths.” (“Shining Light on ‘Dark Winter’,” Center for Civilian Biodefense Strategies, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, Electronically published 19 February 2002.)

Other conclusions of the Dark Winter study:

  • “States have restricted nonessential travel.”
  • “Food shortages are growing in some places, and the national economy is suffering.”
  • “Residents have fled and are fleeing cities where new cases emerge.”
  • “Canada and Mexico have closed their borders to the United States.”
  • “The public demands mandatory isolation of smallpox victims and their contacts, but identifying contacts has become logistically impossible.”
  • “The individual actions of US citizens will be critical to ending the spread of contagious diseases.”

This last point to me is the most important lesson of Dark Winter: To survive you need to prepare in advance.

For more information on Dark Winter, check out the collection of articles here and here. The last link is from the University of Chicago.

120 Cities Most at Risk
State City
Alabama Birmingham
Mobile
Montgomery
Alaska Anchorage
Arkansas Little Rock
Arizona Phoenix
Mesa
Tucson
California Anaheim
Bakersfield
Fremont
Fresno
Glendale
Huntington Beach
Long Beach
Los Angeles
Modesto
Oakland
Riverside
San Bernardino
San Diego
San Francisco
Santa Ana
San Jose
Sacramento
Stockton
Colorado Aurora
Colorado Springs
Denver
District of Columbia Washington
Florida Fort Lauderdale
Hialeah
Jacksonville
Miami
Orlando
St. Petersburg
Tampa
Georgia Atlanta
Columbus
Hawaii Honolulu
Illinois Chicago
Indiana Fort Wayne
Indianapolis
Iowa Des Moines
Kansas Kansas City
Wichita
Kentucky Lexington
Louisville
Louisiana Baton Rouge
Metaire
New Orleans
Shreveport
Maryland Baltimore
Massachusetts Boston
Springfield
Worcester
Michigan Detroit
Grand Rapids
Warren
Minnesota Minneapolis
St. Paul
Mississippi Jackson
Missouri Kansas City
St. Louis
Nebraska Lincoln
Omaha
Nevada Las Vegas
New Jersey Jersey City
Newark
New Mexico Albuquerque
New York Buffalo
New York
Rochester
Syracuse
Yonkers
North Carolina Charlotte
Greensboro
Raleigh
Ohio Akron
Cincinnati
Cleveland
Columbus
Dayton
Toledo
Oklahoma Oklahoma City
Tulsa
Oregon Portland
Pennsylvania Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Rhode Island Providence
Tennessee Chattanooga
Knoxville
Memphis
Nashville
Texas Amarillo
Arlington
Austin
Corpus Christi
Dallas
El Paso
Fort Worth
Garland
Houston
Irving
Lubbock
San Antonio
Utah Salt Lake City
Virginia Arlington
Chesapeake
Newport News
Norfolk
Richmond
Virginia Beach
Washington Seattle
Spokane
Tacoma
Wisconsin Madison
Milwaukee



TOPICS: Activism/Chapters; Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Extended News; Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Philosophy; Politics/Elections; US: Alabama; US: Alaska; US: Arizona; US: Arkansas; US: California; US: Colorado; US: Connecticut; US: Delaware; US: District of Columbia; US: Florida; US: Georgia; US: Hawaii; US: Idaho; US: Illinois; US: Indiana; US: Iowa; US: Kansas; US: Kentucky; US: Louisiana; US: Maine; US: Maryland; US: Massachusetts; US: Michigan; US: Minnesota; US: Mississippi; US: Missouri; US: Montana; US: Nebraska; US: Nevada; US: New Hampshire; US: New Jersey; US: New Mexico; US: North Carolina; US: North Dakota; US: Ohio; US: Oklahoma; US: Oregon; US: Pennsylvania; US: Rhode Island; US: South Carolina; US: South Dakota; US: Tennessee; US: Texas; US: Utah; US: Vermont; US: Virginia; US: Washington; US: West Virginia; US: Wisconsin; US: Wyoming
KEYWORDS: attacks; food; medicine; prayer; preparedness; terrorism; usa; water
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To: RayBob
This list of the 120 cities most at risk is assinine.

Yep, along with the silly "color" alerts and the whole damned Homeland Security Dept.

Borders still unprotected, aliens still not surveilled, middle easterners still pouring in, pilots still unarmed, and while I haven't flown in a year I presume I would still be seriously searched.

101 posted on 02/11/2003 10:27:02 AM PST by iconoclast (Beam me up)
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To: Alouette
but not Dearborn (southern suburb of Detroit where Ford Motor and a gazillion Arabs are located).
Even animals don't deficate where they eat
102 posted on 02/11/2003 1:27:07 PM PST by Moleman
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To: laker_dad
LOL BTW is "Miller's Bar" still in Dearborn?
Yes it is! I work in Dearborn and try to get into Millers once a month or so for lunch, best burger in town.
103 posted on 02/11/2003 1:30:54 PM PST by Moleman
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To: MamaB; RayBob
University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa has a huge mooselimb population. Fifty miles away is an Air Force base that trains 20% of all AF pilots. The only such base east of the Muddysippi River. That's right folks only five bases in the world to train the Air Force's finest.
No threat to the home of the world's largest fighter training base in New Mexico? Guess it's too close to the Chinese Intelligence Agency at Los Alamos.
I could go on with examples of the absurdity of this list but won't. I think post 2 has it right. We are all at risk and very little is being done to reduce that risk.
104 posted on 02/11/2003 2:43:45 PM PST by NerdDad
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To: iconoclast
Well this begs the question,
Which will create more terror, an attack in a large city?
(which would create terror and fleeing survivors)
or the extermination of a small town.
(which would carry the message, NO ONE is safe!).
Not a pretty picture, but one we face.
105 posted on 02/11/2003 2:52:50 PM PST by tet68 (Jeremiah 51:24 ..."..Before your eyes I will repay Babylon for all the wrong they have done in Zion")
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To: ncpastor
Bah.

You can use statistics to prove anything.

106 posted on 02/11/2003 3:23:01 PM PST by The Lake City Gar
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To: ncpastor
Bah.

You can use statistics to prove anything.

107 posted on 02/11/2003 3:40:51 PM PST by The Lake City Gar
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To: Indy Pendance
Well...There's the good news.
108 posted on 02/11/2003 3:42:06 PM PST by The Lake City Gar
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To: Salvation
Alright, Reno's not on the list!!! Woo hoo!!!!
109 posted on 02/11/2003 3:42:23 PM PST by GOP_Raider (OAKLAND RAIDERS AFC CHAMPIONS!!!!)
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To: Robert A. Cook, PE
There's something good about everything.
110 posted on 02/11/2003 3:47:40 PM PST by Conservativegreatgrandma
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To: Salvation
"As you will see, the list includes major government centers (Philadelphia, Miami, Sacramento..."


I think am more terrified of the risks already posed by those operating the "major government centers".

111 posted on 02/11/2003 3:48:47 PM PST by ScottinSacto
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To: NerdDad
**We are all at risk and very little is being done to reduce that risk.**

Must agree here!

112 posted on 02/11/2003 5:19:55 PM PST by Salvation (†With God all things are possible.†)
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To: cincinnati65
My first take is that it's interesting that Jacksonville, NC and Fayetteville, NC (Camp LeJeune and Fort Bragg, respectively) didn't appear on the list for North Carolina.

Nor did Durham/RTP, which would be important strategically.

113 posted on 02/11/2003 5:21:22 PM PST by Oberon (I think I need a nap.)
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To: All
Suggestions for a 72 Hour Kit
114 posted on 02/12/2003 8:34:06 AM PST by Salvation (†With God all things are possible.†)
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To: Noumenon
Unguarded wine cellar!? I'd be inside, self-anesthesizing.
115 posted on 02/13/2003 11:30:38 PM PST by goody2shooz
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To: Koblenz; Redcloak
Nothing in CT?

Or rather, more likely: "nothing in CT" would be the ~result~ of an attack on NYC, Indian Point or Millstone.

116 posted on 02/15/2003 12:43:14 PM PST by LurkedLongEnough
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