Though law enforcement officials downplayed rumors of a possible terrorist attack in Boston over the weekend, college students around the area made a conscious effort to remain on their campuses. While some Tufts students avoided using mass transit or traveling into the city, others avoided using tap water, and still others ignored the threats completely.
US Attorney General John Ashcroft called Boston Mayor Thomas Menino on Thursday to warn him that terrorist strikes could be launched against the city in the near future. Ashcroft, along with the Boston FBI field office and other law enforcement agencies stressed that there were no specific credible threats.
Menino, the FBI, and acting governor Jane Swift all declined to comment on the specifics of their conversations with Ashcroft.
According to reports in the Boston Herald, the scare originated when federal investigators intercepted calls in Arabic that discussed plans to travel to Boston on Saturday. Citing "sources close to the investigation," the Herald reported the first translation of the call was threatening. This prompted Ashcroft's conversations with Menino and Swift. A subsequent translation, however, alleviated officials' fears of a possible terrorist strike.
Tufts did not inform students of the threats or of the official denials of any security issues, but many other schools sent warnings to students via e-mail or posted releases on their websites. Boston University, MIT, Boston College, and Northeastern all communicated assurances that there were no specific threats against Boston, and encouraged students to continue their regular activities.
The Beezlebubs were supposed to sing in Quincy Market on Saturday but canceled plans because of the scare. The event was supposed to be a fundraiser for the Red Cross, but the Bubs thought that few people would be in the downtown area, according to junior Greg Binstock.
"It was frustrating to have planned a small charity event and then have it cancelled," Binstock said. "It will be hard to heal if rumors and scares continue to shape people up and disrupt their lives."
Sophomore Tara Bannon heeded advice given to her Friday by an Express clothing store manager. The manager told her that many Boston area Expresses would be closed because of the scares and that she should not go back to the store until Monday.
"I was going to go [back] to the Cambridgeside Galleria, and an employee at Express said that there had been threats in Boston," Bannon said. The manager warned, "the whole store was going to be closed and to stay out of Boston."
Senior Matt Rydzewski was more cautious about the threats, after receiving an e-mail warning of possible water poisonings. "I went to Jumbo Express and got a container of water just in case," he said. "It's like a natural disaster; you take the necessary precautions."
Not all students were worried about traveling to Boston this weekend, though. "I knew about the threats and I didn't really care," junior Eric Henckles said.
