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Terrorist (and Anti-Terrorist) Data
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The revelation that the Mumbai terrorists had much better knowledge of the internal layout of two five star hotels – the Taj and the Oberoi - than Indian security forces has concentrated attention on the availability of high resolution 3D data on the internal structure of buildings. |
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On 29 November, the Asia-Pacific edition of the International Herald Tribune quotes JK Dutt, the director general of the Indian National Security Guard, the commando force which took the lead in the fighting. Dutt said that the hardest terrorist to attack in the Taj hotel was one who ascended a spiral staircase and took up a position behind an extremely thick pillar that was part of the 105-year-old building's original structure.
He said that the attackers seemed to have detailed knowledge of the building's layout. They kept moving through rooms with multiple entrances, so they could not be cornered in a room with a single entrance/exit.
The observation goes a long way towards explaining how the terrorists were able to hold out in the hotels for three days, despite the best efforts of Indian authorities. It does not explain how they came by the information.
The commandos and police responsible for clearing the buildings had use old blueprints, which did not show recent alterations. In particular, these blueprints did not show where new openings had been constructed between rooms or old openings had been blocked up.
The revelation has concentrated the minds of many in the industry on the availability of high resolution 3D data on the internal structure of buildings. Such knowledge is invaluable, not just for anti-terrorist activities, but also when fighting fires or dealing with other kinds of emergency situtations.
Tom Greaves, the president of a US-based laser scanning consultancy, Spar Point Research, says the owners of large buildings should be required to maintain high resolution, as-built drawings of their facilities. He says the US Secret Service insists on 3D scans and modelling as part of its preperation for what are called National Special Security Events.
'Instead of spending so much time searching grannies for oversized tubes of toothpaste at airports, let’s get security agencies engaged with the private sector to get urban infrastructure documented inside and out,’ says Greaves.
It may seem like a formidable task, but Greaves points out that with modern technology, it could be done relatively quickly and cheaply. Moreover, if the data were shared widely, there would be considerably advantages for urban planners, utility providers and others involved in local government.
