As American and British forces pounded Iraqi targets, airports, government buildings and other public sites across the Chicago area hunkered down Thursday with heightened security and an increased police presence.
At O’Hare International and Midway Airports, officials stepped up security with more uniformed police, bomb-sniffing dogs, tow trucks and squad cars. Police said they are being more vigilant about unattended vehicles and baggage.
Security officers also were added at federal government buildings in Chicago, where they are keeping a close watch on parking lots and property perimeters, authorities said.
Despite the stronger show of force, the two Chicago airports remained at “level-three security” on a four-tiered system, said Dennis Culloton, a spokesman for the city’s Department of Aviation. The airports were upgraded to that level in 1991 during the Persian Gulf war and have remained there, as required by the Federal Aviation Administration, he said.
Still, Culloton said the concern over terrorism has prompted airport workers and police to be more watchful of suspicious activity.
“With the higher tensions from the missile attacks against Iraq, we have gone to a state of heightened attention and heightened awareness,” he said.
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“At this point, the only thing that we ask of passengers is to leave early for the airport, don’t leave their vehicles unattended and notify police if they notice anything unusual.”
Culloton said passengers have not delayed by the extra precautions. He did warn travelers against bringing wrapped packages to the airports because if the boxes cannot be screened properly by scanners airport officials may open them for inspection. Wrapped holiday presents, Culloton suggested, should be mailed.
Virginia and Wallace Wittwer, a couple from Salem, Ore., who spent a few hours Thursday at O’Hare on their way to Philadelphia, said they were a little worried about flying but not enough to cancel their trip.
“It’s always in the back of your mind,” Virginia Wittwer said. “I don’t know when retaliation will come, but I’m sure it will come in the form of terrorism.”
Meanwhile, about 300 peace advocates and critics of the U.S. airstrikes rallied Thursday at the Federal Plaza and urged President Clinton to stop the bombing.