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CNN Live At Daybreak
Securing Major Metropolitan Areas
Aired December 22, 2003 - 05:29 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: You can add the nation's new threat level to the list of things you have to think about this holiday season. The government has raised the threat level from yellow, or elevated, to orange now, which is considered high.
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge warning that terrorists may be plotting strikes worse than the September 11 attacks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: The U.S. intelligence community has received a substantial increase in the volume of threat related intelligence reports. These credible sources suggest the possibility of attacks against the homeland around the holiday season and beyond. The strategic indicators, including al Qaeda's continued desire to carry out attacks against our homeland, are perhaps greater now than at any point since September 11, 2001.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CALLAWAY: Signs have gone up letting people across the country know the government has raised the threat level. And here you can see the public works employees swapping out the flag at the town hall in Country Club Hills, Illinois.
Securing major metropolitan areas, that's a primary concern of homeland security officials.
And reporter Rick Price of our affiliate KIRO looks at precautions being taken in Seattle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK PRICE, KIRO CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the local face of the nation's newest orange alert.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
PRICE: If you drive to SeaTac's ticketing and check-in level, you'll now have to go through this roadblock and police may well search your car. They started setting it up before the Transportation Security Administration specifically asked for it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As soon as we got an indication that something was coming, we pre-positioned a lot of the material that we would need that we knew we needed from past experience so that when the order did come down, we were able to implement this one quite a bit quicker than we have during past increases in alert level.
PRICE: But even before police set this up, some airline passengers were already noticing security changes. Arriving from New York, Jeremy Tatum (ph) found that reassuring.
JEREMY TATUM: With all the traveling going on this time of year, you know, it makes you feel a little bit safer, you know, knowing that people are out there doing their job.
PRICE: Expect that if you're heading to the airport this week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's an increased law enforcement presence in the public areas of the terminal. You will see more uniforms from the Port of Seattle Police Department there patrolling. There are also a number of things that people don't see.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CALLAWAY: And that report was from Rick Price.
He's of our Seattle affiliate KIRO.
You can learn about the homeland security precautions by just going to our Web site. Cnn.com is the address. And the AOL keyword is CNN.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired December 22, 2003 - 05:29 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: You can add the nation's new threat level to the list of things you have to think about this holiday season. The government has raised the threat level from yellow, or elevated, to orange now, which is considered high.
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge warning that terrorists may be plotting strikes worse than the September 11 attacks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: The U.S. intelligence community has received a substantial increase in the volume of threat related intelligence reports. These credible sources suggest the possibility of attacks against the homeland around the holiday season and beyond. The strategic indicators, including al Qaeda's continued desire to carry out attacks against our homeland, are perhaps greater now than at any point since September 11, 2001.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CALLAWAY: Signs have gone up letting people across the country know the government has raised the threat level. And here you can see the public works employees swapping out the flag at the town hall in Country Club Hills, Illinois.
Securing major metropolitan areas, that's a primary concern of homeland security officials.
And reporter Rick Price of our affiliate KIRO looks at precautions being taken in Seattle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK PRICE, KIRO CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the local face of the nation's newest orange alert.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
PRICE: If you drive to SeaTac's ticketing and check-in level, you'll now have to go through this roadblock and police may well search your car. They started setting it up before the Transportation Security Administration specifically asked for it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As soon as we got an indication that something was coming, we pre-positioned a lot of the material that we would need that we knew we needed from past experience so that when the order did come down, we were able to implement this one quite a bit quicker than we have during past increases in alert level.
PRICE: But even before police set this up, some airline passengers were already noticing security changes. Arriving from New York, Jeremy Tatum (ph) found that reassuring.
JEREMY TATUM: With all the traveling going on this time of year, you know, it makes you feel a little bit safer, you know, knowing that people are out there doing their job.
PRICE: Expect that if you're heading to the airport this week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's an increased law enforcement presence in the public areas of the terminal. You will see more uniforms from the Port of Seattle Police Department there patrolling. There are also a number of things that people don't see.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CALLAWAY: And that report was from Rick Price.
He's of our Seattle affiliate KIRO.
You can learn about the homeland security precautions by just going to our Web site. Cnn.com is the address. And the AOL keyword is CNN.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
