The city’s subways help make NYC’s real estate the envy of the world, but as Tuesday’s attacks in Brussels reminded us, they could also be a target for a chemical or biological weapons attack. The Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate seems to think so.
Fifty-five stations around the system, including Penn Station, Grand Central and Times Square, will serve as the venue for a study to track the behavior of “airborne contaminants” this May, reports the New York Post.
“[N]on-toxic, inert, odorless gas and particle tracers” will reportedly be released at rush hour, with the aim of understanding how they move throughout the system when it’s at its busiest.
The exact substances to be used in the test haven’t been determined, but the DHS is saying it’s considering using DNATrax-OB and/or DNATrax-OB-Silica.
While there’s no reason to assume the chemicals are harmful, the former, per a government warning, “may cause further disability if excessive concentrations of particulate are inhaled.” [NYP]
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