Local - KPRC Click2Houston.com
Paper: Houston, Galveston Identified As Terror Threat Tue Jan 13, 2:33 PM ET Add Local - KPRC Click2Houston.com
Houston and Galveston were two of four cities al-Qaida planned to attack, causing authorities to raise the terror alert level last month, USA Today reported Monday.
The Port of Houston spans 25 miles, and more than 6,400 ships cruise in and out of its waters every year.
The Ship Channel area is among the world's top ports.
"I am not surprised at all," former head of Houston FBI (news - web sites) Don Clark said. " Houston really is a world-class city, and a world-class city has many of the things that terrorists would look to achieve their goals."
During the Christmas and New Year's holidays, the U.S. Coast Guard (news - web sites) called in extra help.
"You could see the extra boats out there. Nothing moved on the channel unless it was escorted. And in some cases, they actually had people on board acting as sea marshals," Coast Guard spokesman Adam Wine said.
Wine said a Coast Guard tugboat captain told him he had never seen security at tight as it was last month in his 20-year career at the Port of Houston.
"Basically, it was the tightest security we have had since World War II," Wine said.
The Port of Houston is the second largest petrochemical producer in the world, the largest in the Americas, and also allows the most foreign cargo to sail its channel.