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CNN Saturday Morning News
Connecticut Authorities Assure Residents Their Water is Safe
Aired May 18, 2002 - 08:12 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.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: In Connecticut, authorities are assuring citizens their water is safe after three men were arrested at an area reservoir.
CNN's Deborah Feyerick has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It sounded very suspicious. Three men described as Middle Eastern climbed to the top of this 40-foot water tank in scenic Easton, Connecticut. They were videotaping the reservoir and dam, a major breach of a sensitive target in this time of high security.
(on camera): This is clearly marked. I mean there's one, two, three, four no trespassing signs.
PETER GALANT, VICE PRESIDENT, AQUARIAN COMPANY: Correct.
FEYERICK: There's certainly no way you can make a mistake and think that, you know, you should be on this property.
GALANT: That's correct. All our properties, the perimeter of all our properties are similarly marked.
FEYERICK: Someone driving by saw them and called police. The young men, ages 19 to 21, were arrested. The tank's water supply was shut down. Connecticut's emergency plan went into action. The FBI was called in and every major state and federal agency alerted.
(on camera): What was your biggest fear? What was your biggest worry?
GEN. WILLIAM CUGON, OFFICIAL: Well, clearly you have an unknown. You've got three individuals with a video camera someplace that they're not supposed to be and clearly the concern was them being on the water tank that is the feed line for a major metropolitan area.
FEYERICK (voice-over): The reservoir covers nearly 500 acres and serves about 100,000 people. Officials say it's virtually impossible to keep someone out. FBI agents questioned the three men and let them go.
MICHAEL WOLF, FBI: We ran everything to ground on these individuals. There was no legal grounds to hold them further. Certainly we've kept them in our system and as a kind of a take off, as mentioned in the previous question, there was no breach in that system that would indicate that it was tampered with.
FEYERICK: At the house where two of the men live, a woman answered the door, dismissing the idea the men were suspicious.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No terrorists, no.
FEYERICK (on camera): His going...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Terrorists, no, no, no.
FEYERICK (voice-over): And then a car pulled up.
(on camera): Hey you guys, are you Junette (ph) or Hassan?
HASSAN CHOUDHURY, CHARGED WITH TRESPASSING: Yes.
FEYERICK: Can we talk to you for a second?
(voice-over): It turns out the college students were not from the Middle East, but Bangladesh.
(on camera): Is this a place that a lot of people go to or what?
JUNETTE: Yes.
CHOUDHURY: To tell you the truth, the other day we were passing by, we saw people fishing in there, people in there. So we thought it would be all right to go in there.
FEYERICK: OK.
CHOUDHURY: We didn't think anything, you know, it would be that serious.
FEYERICK: Right.
CHOUDHURY: So that's it.
FEYERICK (voice-over): And why videotape it? They say they were trying out their new camera. The young men were charged with criminal trespassing, a misdemeanor. The chief of police trying to calm fears.
CHIEF JACK SOLOMON, EASTON, CONNECTICUT POLICE: We are absolutely certain that the water is safe. Our community is safe with that water. There was no tampering or anything with the water.
FEYERICK: As for whether the emergency system worked and would officials react the same way, the head of Connecticut's FBI says you bet you.
Deborah Feyerick, CNN, Easton, Connecticut.
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