This sounds like it really shouldn’t have been revealed:
Authorities have disrupted planning by foreign terrorists for an attack on New York City tunnels, two law enforcement officials said Friday. FBI agents monitoring Internet chat rooms used by extremists learned in recent months of the plot to strike a blow at the city’s economy by destroying vital transportation networks, one official said.Lebanese authorities, acting on a U.S. request, have arrested one of the alleged plotters, identified as Amir Andalousli, the other official said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is still under way.
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said, “This is one instance where intelligence was on top of its game and discovered the plot when it was just in the talking phase.”
The geniuses behind this plot wanted to flood the financial district but:
Any plot to flood lower Manhattan by blowing up the Holland Tunnel is doomed to fail, experts say – because it would have to defy the laws of physics.
If the Hudson River surged into a ruptured tunnel, experts told the Daily News, the water would only rise to its own level – and might not even reach street level in the city.
“It might flood the Holland Tunnel, but that’s all it’s going to flood,” said Allan McDuffie, an Army Corps of Engineers expert on New York flood patterns. “It’s not going to get any higher than the level of the surrounding water.”
Almost 40 million vehicles travel the tunnel each year. If successful it would still have been a spectacular attack and flooding a highly trafficked 9,000 foot tunnel rapidly sounds like a high casualty event.
Related:
Holland Tunnel Traffic Cams
Wikipedia
Holland Tunnel – Historic Overview
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July 7th, 2006 at 5:15 pm
You Mean Listening In On Our Enemies Actually Works?
So instead of getting the whole crew who were planning this operation we get one Al-Qaeda agent. It’s rare that any law enforcement agency moves in to get just one guy, take it from a cop. You listen and watch until you identify every player. …
July 7th, 2006 at 5:19 pm
Report: NYC Tunnel Bomb Plot Thwarted
Authorities disrupted planning by foreign terrorists for an attack on New York City tunnels, officia
July 7th, 2006 at 6:24 pm
Holland Tunnel Bomb Plot Disrupted
The terrorists would not have to succeed in flooding Lower Manhattan in order to succeed in creating a mass casualty attack, damaging the local economy, and causing billions in damage. Downplaying such threats is a dangerous game, and the terrorists …