The recent bombing in Boston (and disruption of Amtrak service), the 9/11 attack, and other incidents should have awakend us that the US is a victim in a war of terror. Amtrak has done very well to keep its security minimally intrusive and transparent, however we as riders and enthusiasts must do our part. We cannot rely on solely on security to prevent all attacks and to keep us safe at all times, our freedoms require there be cracks in any security system. Passengers on the 9/11 United flight 93 set the standard by making the decision not to die as passive victims. People in Boston made the instant transition from marathon spectators and participants to first responders. We as passengers on a train (or plane etc) will be the eyes and ears for something going wrong, and need to be mentally and physically prepared to act properly.
As frequent and interested riders we should become knowledgable in normal operations and passenger behavior.
Observe fellow passengers, be friendly, engage them with eye contact or even better with conversation... be able to recognize "hinkey". The bad guys want to be anonymous until THEY are ready... not before.
Watch for stuff out of place. Figure out who belongs to who. Backpacks, luggage, what have you. 99+% of the time it will not be a problem but only once makes for a very bad day. Watch who leaves the train at each stop... If they leave items the time to begin reacting is before the train moves again... Of course most of the time even if there is a problem it will be either stopping theft or reuniting someone with a truely forgotten item.
Have a basic knowledge of first aid. Keep a basic "survival kit" with you (water, a little food, medications for 24-72 hours, etc).
Know where the conductor is likey to be... the car attendant... the closest exit from the train or station... the next closest exit... the fire extingusher (do you KNOW how to use one???, when to use one??? when not to???). Amtrak police phone number?
Think ahead... plan ahead. What if "this" passenger is a bad guy? What would be right to do now? What if I figured out that backpack was likely a bomb? What to do? In the very unlikely scenario where one or both was true you might actually have a chance to react correctly if you have a plan.
Be cooperative with Amtrak police/security. They have a good program that works in the background. Amtrak knows that their passengers do not care to be "sardines in a tin" and that the TSA style "dog an pony show" simply will not work for rail passengers. We as passengers do have to be part of the solution... not the problem... and be prepared to keep something an "incident", not a major occurance.
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As frequent and interested riders we should become knowledgable in normal operations and passenger behavior.
Observe fellow passengers, be friendly, engage them with eye contact or even better with conversation... be able to recognize "hinkey". The bad guys want to be anonymous until THEY are ready... not before.
Watch for stuff out of place. Figure out who belongs to who. Backpacks, luggage, what have you. 99+% of the time it will not be a problem but only once makes for a very bad day. Watch who leaves the train at each stop... If they leave items the time to begin reacting is before the train moves again... Of course most of the time even if there is a problem it will be either stopping theft or reuniting someone with a truely forgotten item.
Have a basic knowledge of first aid. Keep a basic "survival kit" with you (water, a little food, medications for 24-72 hours, etc).
Know where the conductor is likey to be... the car attendant... the closest exit from the train or station... the next closest exit... the fire extingusher (do you KNOW how to use one???, when to use one??? when not to???). Amtrak police phone number?
Think ahead... plan ahead. What if "this" passenger is a bad guy? What would be right to do now? What if I figured out that backpack was likely a bomb? What to do? In the very unlikely scenario where one or both was true you might actually have a chance to react correctly if you have a plan.
Be cooperative with Amtrak police/security. They have a good program that works in the background. Amtrak knows that their passengers do not care to be "sardines in a tin" and that the TSA style "dog an pony show" simply will not work for rail passengers. We as passengers do have to be part of the solution... not the problem... and be prepared to keep something an "incident", not a major occurance.
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