More on the WTC Disaster (Updated) [Sep 11, 2001, 8:30 pm ET] – Share – Viewing Comments
Of course this is not game related (we do not expect to be doing any further
game coverage today), but with the legit news sites being almost impossible to
access at times today, we've been getting loads of requests for more information
about what's been going on. Here is the latest as of about 9:00 PM EDT:
- President Bush addressed the nation 8:30 PM EDT. Here's a wire report: WASHINGTON (AP) - A grim-faced President Bush condemned ghastly attacks in Washington and New York on Tuesday and vowed to "find those responsible and bring them to justice." In the second Oval Office address of his presidency, Bush said the United States would retaliate against ``those behind these evil acts,'' and any country that harbors them.
To recap:
- In two separate attacks, hijacked planes struck both main towers of the World Trade Center in Manhattan this morning, and both of the "twin towers" subsequently collapsed.
- A hijacked plane struck the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. and part of it has collapsed as well.
- A hijacked plane crashed in western Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. Reports indicate the hijackers planned to crash this plane into Camp David in Maryland.
- 47 Story WTC building seven, one of the five (relatively) smaller buildings in the World Trade Center also later collapsed from ancillary damage.
- The White House, the Pentagon, and the Capitol Building were all evacuated, all domestic flights in the US have been grounded through at least noon tomorrow.
- Other closings include most federal offices, the stock markets, the Disney theme parks, and the cancellation of today's Major League Baseball schedule. The President's speech announced that all federal agencies will be open for business tomorrow.
- Broadcasts out of Afghanistan showed evidence of missile attacks and antiaircraft fire, but what connection this has to today's apparent terrorist attacks in the US is not clear at this point. The US has denied involvement in these attacks.
- In the first hints of any sort at the scope of casualties, the New York City Fire Department has estimated that as many as half of the 400 firefighters dispatched to the scene are missing. CNN has said that 78 Police officers are missing. Also, the death toll from those on the four hijacked planes has been placed at 266. The number of dead and injured at the Pentagon has been widely reported as about 100. No estimates of the number of victims from the World Trade Center have been made.
- People throughout the United States have are being urged to donate blood to help offset significant shortages in New York and Washington. The American Red Cross in Greater New York or the American Red Cross are places to contact about donating blood or money, or both.
- Some news sites seem to be back online. Here are some links that have been more reliable: CNN.com; CNET.com; Yahoo; The New York Times; washingtonpost.com; usnews.com; ABCNEWS.com; FOXNews.com; MSNBC; and BBC News Online.
All of our thoughts go out to the victims of these attacks and their families and friends in what must be an incredibly difficult time.
Many of you have already said that the reasons these terrorist acts were so easily executed were the many flaws and lack of security within the American flight transportation system. I've thought of several measures which might possibly help from these acts from being reiterated again:
1) Make the door/wall separting the pilots cabin from the passenger cabin more secure - meaning locked, made of sturdy metal, etc. If this is inpenetrable, the pilots would have never been killed and the planes would have never been in the wrong hands for an even more devastating atrocity. Maybe a bulletproof window on this separator will also help, allowing pilots to see what, if anything, is going on behind them. A pilot leaving his cabin not only endangers everybody onboard, but allows hijackers to take control of the plane and wreak more havoc.
2) Post armed security guards aboard the plane. I believe it is ridiculous to see how there is no form of security besides the few flight attendants aboard the plane. I do not understand why our flight system makes it so tempting for anybody, even with a plastic knife, to be able to take over a plane by threatening the lives of all passengers.
These points might seem somewhat overwhelming for our current system, since it will need additional employees and maintenance for many planes. Whatever they may be, I bet the costs for these will never surpass the costs WTC atrocity.
1) Make the door/wall separting the pilots cabin from the passenger cabin more secure - meaning locked, made of sturdy metal, etc. If this is inpenetrable, the pilots would have never been killed and the planes would have never been in the wrong hands for an even more devastating atrocity. Maybe a bulletproof window on this separator will also help, allowing pilots to see what, if anything, is going on behind them. A pilot leaving his cabin not only endangers everybody onboard, but allows hijackers to take control of the plane and wreak more havoc.
2) Post armed security guards aboard the plane. I believe it is ridiculous to see how there is no form of security besides the few flight attendants aboard the plane. I do not understand why our flight system makes it so tempting for anybody, even with a plastic knife, to be able to take over a plane by threatening the lives of all passengers.
These points might seem somewhat overwhelming for our current system, since it will need additional employees and maintenance for many planes. Whatever they may be, I bet the costs for these will never surpass the costs WTC atrocity.
Date
Subject
Author
507.
Sep 13, 2001Sep 13 2001
Security Measures
anon@207.215
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