Posted on 01/31/2007 12:04:30 PM PST by Howlin
BOSTON -- Four "hoax devices" were found at several Boston locations Wednesday, hours after officials detonated a suspicious package on an elevated structure above the Sullivan Square Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority station.
The additional packages were found at the Boston University Bridge, the Longfellow Bridge and near the intersection of Stuart and Columbus streets. A device described by officials as a pipe bomb was found in the basement of the Tufts New England Medical Center at 185 Harrison Ave.
A spokesman for the Boston Police Department said that all of the packages appeared to be similar.
"Our device was not an active device. We are still treating the area as a crime scene. There were no injuries. Everyone was evacuated properly, and everyone now back to their locations," Tufts New England Medical Center's Brooke Hynes said.
Mayor Tom Menino said that all of the packages found posed no danger, but the incidents remained under investigation. Storrow Drive eastbound was shut down for a brief time, and the MBTA suspended service on the Red Line and planned to bus afternoon commuters between Kendall and Park Street stations.
Earlier Wednesday, the state police bomb squad was called and detonated the package in Sullivan Square just before 10 a.m. Officials said it contained an electronic circuit board with some components that were "consistent with an improvised explosive device," but they said it had no explosives. They determined that the device was not dangerous, but destroyed it as a precaution.
"We determined that this device, in particular, was not explosive," said MBTA Lt. Sal Venturelli.
He said MBTA police were told about the package by a transit passenger who spotted it on a column that supports Interstate 93. The parcel was located on an elevated structure above the bus way and below I-93 in the Charlestown section of Boston at about 8 a.m.
"This is a perfect example of our passengers taking part in Homeland Security," Venturelli said.
An investigation will be conducted into how the package got there and when, he said.
Train service on the Orange Line between Sullivan Square and Wellington stations was suspended in both directions. No injuries were reported.
The northbound side of I-93 was closed, causing significant traffic backups. Motorists were not allowed to access the highway near Sullivan Square coming up from the south.
Perhaps. Or maybe trying to create a "cry wolf" scenario so the next real incident won't be taken seriously.
Hmmm . . . I wonder why all the rich guy places?
Logan does have a history.
There comes a point at which you get a certain number of coincidences and they aren't that any more.
Judge Eddie Munster saying that just the hoax could be subject to prosecution that can result in 20 years of prison time.
Nah, putting a triforce on top of the Great Dome is the sort of thing MIT nerds do. They wouldn't do this kind of "prank".
Photo found with device....flipping off the finder?
I think two at Logan, and one each at Dulles and Newark.
sw
Practice?
Maybe he did, but it sure sounded like he said "hooks."
Depends on his politics.
Not only practicing, but testing the system to observe how long it took to be reported, and what happened when it was. Terrorists can learn a lot from this, and with all the news coverage detailing the responses, this is an effective "dry run" for both the US authorities and the terrorists.
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Good point.
Too many Americans are almost at that point now, the last election was proof of that.
I stand corrected.
...in liberal Boston Mass?....*agasp*
?Testing the reaction of the new Governor??
I would think that terrorists consider MA to be an even "softer" target now... look at the Senators, Reps and now Governor from this place.
sw
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