The Utility as a Target

It has been said that people power is as American as apple pie, and history certainly supports this concept. People have demon strated against war, and in favor of and against social movements such as prohibition, women's voting rights, housing, civil rights. and economic conditions. Workers have handed together to form unions and have used the strike as an effective weapon for more than 70 years. However, the mood that strikes some people to destroy or vandalize impulsively is also very much a part of society. The chilling aspect of activities that are being witnessed now is dramatized by the statistics prepared by the US Treasury Dept.. indicating that there were more than 5800 bombings or attempted bombings during the fifteen-month period ending Apr. 1970". As a result of these acts, 42 people died. 384 people were injured, and more than $20 million of property damage was reported. However, the very real interaction of these events with the operation of water utilities poses a new type of threat to society. The critical nature of water-utility operations is obvious in the context of domestic, municipal, and industrial operations, and this fact is becoming apparent to those elements in society identified