A man with a car or truck, a machete and a murderous determination has now become the new norm for low tech terrorist attack.
This recent vehicle ramming attack in Britain, where a man mowed down pedestrians on the Westminster Bridge before jumping out of the vehicle and stabbing a policeman to death before he was shot and killed, is part of a growing new trend.
The attack left four people dead and injured another 28 others, proving that this style of terror attack is fast becoming the new method to terrorize and frighten western nations.
The attacker, Khalid Masood, is believed to have acted alone in carrying out this copycat ISIS inspired attack. ISIS may be losing money and ground in its biggest strongholds, but they have one powerful, unpredictable weapon called: Social Media.
Seriously, who would have predicted 10-12 years ago, when social media was invented, that it would become the primary tool to recruit and radicalize would-be Islamic extremists to carry out terrorist attacks? Analysts who have been studying these types of attacks say their crude nature makes them almost impossible to prevent and easy to duplicate, and they are wreaking havoc for security services as they try to predict and prevent them.
Just a month ago I wrote an article called “Threat of vehicle-ramming attacks could take place anywhere — always be alert” where I emphasized this growing concern and suggested a few tips on how to protect yourself.
Not to be an alarmist, but with this recent attack I think it’s time for all Americans to start taking this threat more serious, including all local county and city officials that have any sizeable outdoor venues or tourist attractions that can be easily targeted. As spring weather starts to heat up, large crowds will start to gather for these weekly music concerts, marathons, festivals, parades, tourist attractions …etc., making everybody easy targets for such an attack.
Similar attacks have already hit our shores here in the United States just as recent as this past November, where a student used a vehicle and knife to injure 13 on Ohio State’s campus.
So the question that is asked, ‘What can you do?’ Well, we can’t ban cars, trucks or even knives for that matter, so the answer is not an easy one.
Anyone who thinks that America will not be seeing an increase in these types of “Terror By Truck” assaults is in for a very sad awakening, I believe. I hope that I am wrong, but the first step is to recognize this exposure for what it is, and then become more vigilant when you are in large crowds.
As an advisor to the Storefront Safety Council, I believe local officials should take the same principles that they use to reduce to help prevent the nearly 500 deaths and the roughly 3,600 injuries that arise from vehicle intrusion accidents.
The Council is comprised of volunteers from a variety of backgrounds who are passionate about ending Storefront crashes from vehicles.
Supporters include experts in parking, perimeter security, risk management, architecture and related professions and industries. Rob Reiter founded the Storefront Safety Council in 2011, and we became distant friends a few years back after I wrote an article about the danger of vehicle crashes into business and residences and how to try to prevent them.
After writing that article, Rob asked me to sit on his counsel as a risk management expert and I gladly accepted because we are both passionate about preventing accidents and keeping people safe. Rob’s mission is to raise awareness about this very preventable deadly problem, while exploring prevention and protection strategies to include future legislative changes on all new commercial buildings and eventually existing.
His organization collects and analyzes data and statistics while trying to educate key professionals and stakeholders about the changes they can make to start saving lives.
Rob says that “convenience stores (and other commercial building owners) that take no preventative measures against pedal error and other driver mishaps needlessly put their business — including their customers and employees — at risk” and he is right.
These same principals should be used by local and county governments as cities that are looking to better protect their citizens from future vehicle ramming attacks. Even simple event street closures should begin to take on a whole new dynamic, which should include temporary concrete barriers to block streets off to better protect the safety of those that are attending the event.
It’s obvious that safety cones and a police officer standing in the middle of a closed off street will not be able to stop a 15,000-pound truck driving 50 MPH. Therefore local planners and officials need to begin planning to implement such changes now before these events roll around later this year, as I fear that we just may see a significant increase in vehicle ramming attacks in America in 2017.
Larger cities like New York and Washington have been dealing with these issues for some time, by strategically placing garbage trucks and dump trucks filled with sand to help thwart ramming attacks. Local officials should be reaching out to truck hauling companies to schedule a few trucks for similar protection.
Also, when redesigning outdoor venue areas, main street pavilions, tourist attractions …etc., local officials should also begin looking to strategically install security concrete bollards in key areas to best protect the public from car ramming attacks.
Whether we like it or not, this is the new norm and local officials need to get on board now, instead of waiting for a headline-making attack occurs in their home town.
I suspect that if this trend continues to grow, that the federal government may start issuing grants to local municipalizes and cities to help offset these costs and to help thwart future attacks, but I suspect that it will take several more before that occurs.
This new threat erodes the safety that we all feel in our local communities and small towns all across America. However, we cannot hide in our homes and refuse to participate or visit local festivals, events, tourist attractions or attend a local parade.
That’s exactly what the terrorist wants you to do. Instead, remain vigilant and aware, but also lean on your local officials to start taking this growing threat more seriously.
Be Safe My Friends.
Keven Moore works in risk management services. He has a bachelor’s degree from University of Kentucky, a master’s from Eastern Kentucky University and 25-plus years of experience in the safety and insurance profession. He lives in Lexington with his family and works out of both the Lexington and Northern Kentucky offices. Keven can be reached at kmoore@roeding.com.