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U.S. raises alert level amid 'copycat' concerns

Posted on: Thursday, 7 July 2005, 15:15 CDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States raised its terrorism alert level from "elevated" to "high" for buses, subways and trains on Thursday amid concerns of copycat attacks following deadly bombings in London.

Federal officials said they swiftly contacted local authorities and urged commuters to be alert after four blasts in London killed at least 37 people. British Prime Minister Tony Blair said it was an apparent terrorist attack coinciding with a meeting of Group of Eight leaders in Scotland.

"We feel that, at least in the short term, we should raise the (alert) level here because, obviously, we're concerned about the possibility of a copycat attack," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told a news conference.

He said he had no specific, credible information of an imminent attack but that al Qaeda and its affiliates remained bent on targeting Europe and the United States. Chertoff did not say who he thought was behind the London blasts.

President Bush, in Scotland for the G8 session, said he told homeland security officials to be extra vigilant as Americans headed to work. White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Bush agreed to heighten the alert level at about 9:30 a.m. (1330 GMT) -- more than five hours after the blasts.

"The war on terror goes on," Bush said.

Initial reaction in U.S. cities, especially those affected by the Sept. 11, 2001, hijacked airliner attacks, was more one of sympathy than alarm. Outside the British Embassy in Washington a man held up a placard that read: "Today we are all British."

Muslim Americans offered their condolences, and the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) advocacy group condemned the "barbaric" attacks.

DELAYED ALERT

After initially saying the U.S. alert level was unchanged, the Department of Homeland Security hiked the terror alert level to high, or orange, the second-highest category of five, for railway and subway systems. The alert level was also raised for intra-city bus lines. Airline traffic was unaffected.

U.S. officials stepped up security in a number of cities, from Washington, Boston and New York to Chicago, Houston and Los Angeles. Bomb-sniffing dogs and security sweeps were seen at some subway platforms, while police cars patrolled outside stations and officers searched buses.

U.S. stocks slid on word of the attacks, before recovering most of their early losses.

"This is not an occasion for undue anxiety. It's an occasion for a sense of sympathy and solidarity for our allies over in Britain," Chertoff told the news conference.

More than 16 million people use mass transit in the United States on an average weekday, including travel on bus, subway and commuter rail lines. The biggest system is in New York followed by Los Angeles and Chicago. Another 68,000 people use Amtrak, which operates 300 trains in 46 states.

Amtrak, the national passenger railroad, said it raised its security threat level "strictly as a precaution." U.S. freight railroads also urged employees to boost vigilance.

Washington police said security had been increased around some key buildings and a spokesman said a Joint Operations Command Center, only activated for large-scale demonstrations, parades, or emergency situations, was in force.

U.S. officials including the intelligence czar's office and the FBI said pledged to help Britain deal with the attacks and find out who was responsible.

The U.S. reaction was a step higher than after the March 11, 2004, train bombings in Spain that killed almost 200. Those attacks did not lead to a raising of the color-coded terror threat but transportation systems across the country were advised to be on higher alert.

The last time the Department of Homeland Security raised the threat level was in November 2004, for three months, for the financial services sector in New York, New Jersey, and Washington from elevated or code yellow to high.

NATIONWIDE PRECAUTIONS

Authorities in New York, where the 2001 twin plane attacks killed almost 3,000 people, urged vigilance, and by mid-morning security was noticeably tighter with extra armed police patrolling subways stations.

In Chicago, Mayor Richard Daley said he had "heightened security throughout the city, especially in the downtown area and our mass transit system."

Miami Police Chief John Timoney put his staff on alert soon after he saw the blasts on television at 6 a.m. (1000 GMT).

The domestic aviation system operated normally and no security-related delays or incidents were reported at major airports.

Source: REUTERS

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