Vehicle Ramming Attacks

On 6^th June 2017, a hired van plowed into pedestrians on London Bridge, before the three attackers it carried debussed and ran down to Borough Market, where they engaged in a stabbing spree in several pubs and restaurants. Less than 3 months earlier (March 22^nd), 52-year old Khalid Masood drove a car along the pavement of Westminster Bridge, killing 4 and injuring 50, before crashing his car into the perimeter fence of the Palace grounds (where the British Parliament sits), and fatally stabbing an unarmed police officer. Both sets of terrorists, were eventually shot by armed police. Both of these incidents are examples of “Vehicle-Ramming” attacks; where a car, van, or similar is used to ram crowds, buildings, or checkpoints, etc., to kill, injure and/or gain access to an area/environment. Although currently in vogue with terrorists, it was common in the 1980’s and 1990’s in the UK for criminal elements to use “vehicle ramming” tactics to smash through shop fronts, and steal merchandise; these ram-raiders would use estate cars/station wagons to reverse into shop windows, breaking the glass, and then would access the shop through the rear door and load the vehicle with merchandise/products before the police could respond to the shop’s alarm system. Although ram-raiding a shop, and driving a car into a group of pedestrians as part of a terror attack, may seem very, very different events, vehicle-ramming, in a broad sense, is not a new phenomenon in the UK.

In terms of terrorist attacks, it is likely that the use of cars and vans to run down groups of pedestrians is going to increase. Whilst we get better at securing our perimeters, and preventing explosive devices from getting into buildings – the suicide bomber at the Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, targeted those leaving the concert, and didn’t try to get past security – terrorists will look for ways and means to cause death and destruction where no such security exists. This means the targeting of civilians in unprotected areas. The terror effect of this is also greater, as it effects everyday life, rather than just specific events; something that the IRA understood all too well, in the pub/bar bombings it carried out in the UK during the 1970’s and 80’s. Disrupting the way a city operates on a day-to-day basis, forces people to think about terrorists and their goals, more frequently than attacks that target specific events, etc. Vehicle ramming takes little to no training, and requires no specialist equipment e.g. any car, van or lorry will do, and possibly a valid driver’s license, if the individual(s) is attempting to hire a vehicle. As has been seen in both Nice (86 people killed, in a Lorry attack in July 2016), and the latest attack in London where 8 people were killed and 48 injured, the casualty rate can be both high, and largely guaranteed – there are many factors which may limit the effects of an explosive device, and there are always complexities in the design that may cause it to fail to detonate, etc. Driving a vehicle into a crowd is simple, direct, and the results are pretty much predictable and guaranteed. 

Whilst there is little we can do to stop a car/van that is attempting to ram us, if we can understand some of the environmental factors that are required for such a terrorist attack to be successful, then we will know when we must be more aware of our surroundings, and can heighten our vigilance accordingly. Firstly, if a terrorist is looking to use their vehicle to ram people/crowds, they will be looking for the highest kill-rate possible; the more people dead, the greater the success of the mission. In both London attacks, the terrorists chose times and locations when there would be relatively large numbers of people present. In the March attack, Khalid Masood targeted Westminster Bridge, mid-afternoon; a time and location where there would be many people sight-seeing, etc. In the June attack, the terrorists chose a location, day, and a time, when they knew there would be a lot of people out socializing; a Saturday night around 10 pm (whilst it would seem that part of their target selection involved those who they thought were living an impure lifestyle – they were heard to shout “stop living this life” – the Jihadist/Islamist viewpoint sees every non-believer as being impure). The timing was also important in that there wouldn’t be heavy traffic. To use a vehicle successfully in such an attack requires it to be able to hit people with enough speed, that it will knock them out of the way, allowing them access to a greater number of potential victims. Both locations were chosen because there was enough space/room to get up to/maintain a decent speed. In the June attack, the terrorists had intended to use a heavier vehicle – a 7.5 ton truck – but weren’t able to provide the necessary payment details, and so had to hire a smaller van. The heavier the vehicle, the more room to pick up and maintain speed (in the March attack, Masood managed to get his car up to 76 mph), the higher the kill-rate. Heavy traffic, narrow roads, parked cars, and tight corners are not conducive to vehicle-ramming attacks that target crowds.     

Terrorists watch and they learn from each other. In the Westminster Bridge attack (March 2017), the media reported that pedestrians were knocked off the bridge and into the water. A bridge acts as a funnel, that forces people into a denser group, and restricts their movement. Terrorists and criminals, understand and make use of funnels all the time e.g. pickpockets like targeting individuals at the top and bottom of escalators, where people bunch together and slow down. Understanding when you are entering a funnel is part of good situational awareness, whether it is a bridge, the top/bottom of an escalator, or a doorway, etc. These are the times to be aware of who and what is around you. Awareness is not just a visual skill, it is an auditory one as well – hearing a car engine, which is louder than it should be, along with shouts and screams, should help alert you to the presence of danger. If you couple this with walking on the side of the road where you can see oncoming traffic, you will increase your reaction/response time; a car could cross over from the other lane, behind you, however it will need time and space to do this, that can’t necessarily be guaranteed.    

There are things that the authorities can do to restrict vehicle ramming attacks, such as putting up bollards. In the 2007 Glasgow airport attack, security bollards stopped a car packed with explosives, from entering the terminal. Obviously bollards aren't going to be completely effective in all situations, especially where the vehicle size is of a significant weight and there is enough time and distance for it to pick up sufficient speed, etc., but even in these instances where the vehicle may continue through/past the bollards, they will have slowed it down somewhat, potentially reducing the casualty rates. In both of the recent London attacks, bollards on the bridge, and the approach to it, would have likely prevented such an attack from being successful. However, if these targets had been hardened in this way, it is likely that another location would have been chosen, which is why understanding when and where such attacks are likely to take place (along with where they are not), and raising our awareness accordingly is our best chance of surviving such attacks.