Coast Guard warns of terrorist threat in Puget Sound

KING-TV Seattle ^ | 6.9.02

[mhking]

Coast Guard warns of terrorist threat in Puget Sound
06/08/2002
The Associated Press

SEATTLE - The Coast Guard warned Saturday evening of a potential terrorist threat to “maritime interests” around Puget Sound.

“Based on information received across the U.S. Government, there is a credible threat to maritime interests from swimmers and divers,” Lt. Scott Casad of the Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Puget Sound said in a release.

He said the Coast Guard had told local port officials and maritime business owners to be on guard for suspicious activity.

No further details on possible targets or what triggered the warning were released. Casad did not immediately return a phone call Saturday evening.

The warning followed one from FBI national headquarters on May 23 that “various terrorist elements have sought to develop an offensive scuba diver capability.”

FBI agents have been questioning scuba diving instructors in Washington and around the country about any suspicious activity, including students interested in learning about underwater demolition.

Also, the Washington State Patrol last week was making random vehicle searches at public ferry terminals. The searches were done on the advice of the Washington State Ferries Security Committee, made up of staff from the Coast Guard, State Patrol and ferry system.

The Coast Guard’s Casad asked Saturday that any suspicious maritime activity be reported to the Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Puget Sound, at (206) 217-6230 or 1 (800) 688-6664.

[Mulder]

Meanwhile, our incompetent federal government is probably looking for 80-year old grannies renting SCUBA gear.

[hedgetrimmer]

Yep this is true. BE OBSERVANT!

We just got word of pipe bombs planted on the Capitola, CA esplanade. Everyone is evacuated.

Someone was observant and saved lives!

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

FYI

[sleavelessinseattle]

Hey GUNS...Thanks! we're firing up the looney bin thread again...But I need to digest this local stuff...good ping

[sleavelessinseattle]

I think the main nexus of support was in Canada...they found evidence of cooking and interlocking communications channels amongst the mild mannered Upers...If anybody missed the Peggy noonan article on THE OTHER SHOE, Its on my profile and reminds us that we are still vulnerable...the smallpox angle just chills me to the bone...none of the kids have any immunity...gruesome image...stay sharp Freepers.

[spetznaz]

There are times when i wonder if terrorist groups, some of the people we have in the detention centers, and even some pranksters out there are not churning out false info. The terrorists and detainees may be doing it to saturate the authorities with tasks that exceed their capabilities (aftre all there is only a finite number of things the Feds can do), and maybe the objectives of the pranksters is a laugh from seeing their 'threat' get printed on the morning paper as a 'federal warning.'

I guess the main problem the Feds are facing is the trade-off between just concentrating on 'credible threats,' and the risk of refusing to follow a certain 'ludicrous' threat, and that threat becomes a reality (eg before 9-11 the events that happened that morning would have been classified as 'highly improbable').

Let's just say that the FBI is finding itself under such a punitive work load that i doubt it will even be able to deal with what we can now call 'normal' crime like kidnappings and big-style theft! And with all these 'threat' flying left right and center there is a chance they will be so inundiated with 'leads' that the real one may penetrate their over-loaded dragnets!

And that will lead to another cycle of 'why did you not know?' Saddening!

[wardaddy]

Scary....I don't see an easy way to protect military or civilian floating assets right off the top of my head other than to try to break our enemies will to fight..do you?

My experience with merchant ships at night is that they are dark unwieldy leviathans quite vulnerable to anyone with the cajones and the knowledge.

[spetznaz]

I onyl have one problem with Martial Law. Would you be willing to see it enforced indefinitely, since the threats are notgoing to dissipate! The Martial Law would be in effect for a very long time if its intention is to protect the USA from attacks and other nefarious activity.

And the other problem i have with Martial Law is that the terrorists would have won! How? The reason is that one of their objectives is to alter the American way of life, and the application of Martial Law would deny us of many of the things that make America America. We would become a police state.... a virtual Iran (without the theocracy) with scores of secret police runnign around telling us what to do, and having to deal with curfews and restrictions on basically everything. What would be better to the terrorists (other than the outright destruction of all Americans) than for the rights, priviledges and advantages enjoyed by all citizens to be taken away by their own government. to them that would be poetic justice!

[11B3]

No that's where you're wrong.
They don't give a damn about our "way of life". They want us dead. That's all - DEAD. So to deny them that, we must kill ALL OF THEM first.

[spetznaz]

It is one thing to destroy them all first, and i have no problem with getting the perpetrators and showing the the power of a JDAM.

However what the Freeper had been suggesting was martial law! And if we imposed that on ourselves the terrorists would have won a big battle since they would have changed the nature of American life!

Thus bomb UBL and his cronies for all you want, but the moment you change our way of life they win....even if they are dead!

And you really do not need to FLAME me to give your point!

[spetznaz]

And if you read my post i clearly stated that UBL and company would like to see all Americans dead...however he would also be glad to see the lifestyles enjoyed by the US taken away by its own government. If you saw the publicized chat of UBL talking with his terrorist friends after 9-11 you will notice that he assumed the way of life of Americans would change after the collapse of the towers. Thus the overhaul of the American way of life is at the very least a secondary objective of his... although in my opinion it is primary, second only to the outright destruction of all Americans.

Hence JDAM away...heck, even toss in a couple of Trident SLBMs. However advocating martial law is myopic and self-punitive

[Syncro]

Did they find anything...that area is pretty crowded on a Sat nite isn't it?

[Ol' Sox]

Excellent work. Shine a light on those vermin and watch 'em scatter! I've had my digital camera in my briefcase ever since a Freeper mentioned it back in September. Gives another meaning to concealed carry.

[Steve Eisenberg]

There were 2 experts (ex Seals or something) on Fox News who said that it was extremely improbable terrorists would attempt an underwater/scuba attack because of all the difficulties involved. They said other methods of attack were much easier to accomplish.

From time to time, one sees such statements to the effect that terrorists will not do X or Y because it is difficult and other types of attacks would be easier. However, there is little evidence that the terrorists the U.S. faces are interested in pulling off easy attacks. The difference between Al Quaeda and the terrorists who hit Israel is that Al Quaeda prefers to pull off difficult attacks at widely separated intervals while the Palestinian terrorists instead go for easy attacks which, because they are easy, can be executed frequently. In the long run, neither set of tactics will succeed.

[snippy_about_it]

They found pipe bombs in several trash cans. Link to News Story

[csvset]

Heck, sinking a ship in the shipping channel or sinking several ships pierside would promote economic terror.

Salvage operations would be expensive, you'd loose use of the port/pier, spread fear, etc. Yep, low cost, high impact. Coming to a port near us soon?

[anniegetyourgun]

Holy cow - just wake up to find this. Thanks for the ping, TGYC. Guess we'll stay clear of the Sound on this lovely (how rare) spring day in Seattle.

[blam]

Our local paper (Mobile Register), had a short article last week about the FBI visiting all the dive shops in the area with warnings/precautions. I expect this is happening all over the country and especially in port cities.

[SpookBrat]

You and the coast guard are in my thoughts Tonkin, as always.