Toronto subway closed due to bomb threat

[Ani_Ibi]

Bomb threat halts Toronto subway for an hour

Last Updated Thu, 28 Jul 2005 21:37:34 EDT

CBC News

Officials shut down part of Canada’s largest subway transit system for almost an hour Thursday morning following a bomb threat. Police declined to say who made the bomb threat, which appeared to target the transit system’s Davisville station north of mid-town.


Starting at 10 a.m., passengers wanting to use the north-south Yonge line between downtown Union Station and Eglinton in north Toronto were taken on shuttle buses along Yonge Street instead.

Part of the east-west Bloor line, which runs across mid-town, was also shut down.

The lines reopened 53 minutes later, according to Toronto Transit Commission spokeswoman Marilyn Bolton.

The threat occurred exactly three weeks after attacks on London’s transit system killed 56 people and a week after the bombs of other plotters in the British capital fizzled and failed to detonate.

 

[Ani_Ibi]

Ottawa bus drivers get hints on spotting terrorists

Last Updated Thu, 28 Jul 2005 21:37:24 EDT CBC News

Ottawa bus drivers have been issued a U.S. pamphlet offering tips on how to spot terrorists. OC Transpo general manager Gord Diamond said the pamphlet, titled Employee Guide to Terrorist Activity Recognition and Reaction, was obtained through the U.S. National Transit Institute.

http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/pix/diamond_gordon050728.jpg Gord Diamond
The institute, based at New Jersey’s Rutgers University, declined to make a copy available to CBC Online.

Associate director Renee Haider said it has been offered to Canadian transit agencies for staff use. Making it public might give terrorists hints on how to avoid being detected, she said.

The institute also offers a one-day course on spotting terrorists. The course outline says:

"As terrorist threats loom, routine security responsibilities for transit agency employees need to include monitoring activities around the work area while performing their primary job duties. This monitoring includes watching for things that are out-of-the-ordinary and identifying suspicious activities and objects.

"The goals of the course are to provide participants with the knowledge and skills to:

"Explain the importance of identifying and reporting pre-attack terrorist activity;

"Recognize the difference between normal, suspicious, and dangerous activity;

"Define their role in recognizing and reacting to suspicious activity;

“Describe their immediate actions when confronted with dangerous activity.”

• FROm July 22, 2005: No security changes on OC Transpo

Diamond said the institute has “some handy guides for employees to use for general security” as well as the one “more about recognizing potential terrorists and what actions you should take should you do so.”

As he sees it, the pamphlets offer basic common sense and no supplementary staff training is required. The pamphlets are part of an upgrade of security procedures recommended by the federal government after Sept. 11, 2001, he said.

“It’s just a prudent thing to do in our increased-vigilance posture that we have adopted across the country.”