Replies

Just saw this at mutter's---(trying to verify if there really is a nuke threat to the West Coast):

www.timesstar.com/Stories/0,1413,125~1486~2477704,00.html

BART calls on SWAT for pre-Nov. 2 terror deterrent

For the first time since Sept. 11, 2001, the transit district is bringing out the big guns as part of a localized Orange Alert.

In past alerts, BART riders have grown accustomed to seeing additional bomb-dog teams and pairs of BART volunteers in green vests, acting as "eyes and ears."

But from now until Nov. 2, riders will have to get used to SWAT patrols in full battle gear, automatic M-16 rifles and all. The new measure is an added precaution against an October "surprise," Osama bin Laden-style.

Federal counter-terrorism officials have been warning since early summer of undefined threats of an al-Qaida attack aimed at disrupting U.S. presidential elections.

BART security chiefs don't say they take the latest round of unspecified chatter any more seriously than past alerts, but they do point out that reasons for caution are abundant.

"If there is a consistent thread in the chatter over the last several months, it is that if something is going to happen it will happen before the election. That makes a lot of intuitive sense, and we don't want to take any chances," said BART's operations manager, Paul Overseier, who heads the transit district's security effort.

It's intuitive because the March 11 Madrid rail explosions were days before Spain's elections, as were the recent attacks in Russia.

"We're generally concerned about what we're hearing. There's nothing specific about BART, nothing specific about the Bay Area and nothing specific about subway systems. But there is increasing chatter, and it's ongoing," Overseier said.

BART police Chief Gary Gee said the public will see roughly a 20 percent increase in police presence, which will fan out to suburban stations more. SWAT and bomb-dog teams will be deployed at random.

Civilian BART employees will don bright green vests and act as roving patrols. People who see unattended bags or other suspicious items can report them to these volunteers. Overseier said their ranks will grow as Election Day nears.