Read the full story here Web Link posted Tuesday, March 10, 2009, 4:41 PM
Town Square
Bomb squad detonates suspicious package in south Palo Alto
Original post made on Mar 10, 2009
Read the full story here Web Link posted Tuesday, March 10, 2009, 4:41 PM
Comments (48)
Posted by TwoSides
a resident of South of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:07 pm
a resident of South of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:07 pm
soooo, IS it a bomb?
Posted by Palo Alto Way
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:10 pm
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:10 pm
They cannot rush and make that decision. They need to get input from consultants, put together an ad hoc committee, wait for neighborhood input and then they will decide.
That is the Palo Alto way
Posted by cione
a resident of Meadow Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:24 pm
a resident of Meadow Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:24 pm
so did everyone just hear that explosion?Iguess it was a bomb...
Posted by Billy Banks
a resident of Palo Alto Orchards
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:31 pm
a resident of Palo Alto Orchards
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:31 pm
That was a good explosion, not sure if it was a bomb or the bomb squad attempting to open the box.
Posted by Billy Bob
a resident of Meadow Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:33 pm
a resident of Meadow Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:33 pm
Sure was. I hear helicopters out now. Are we on the news yet?
Posted by concerned me
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:39 pm
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:39 pm
My husband is at home (South PA) and just heard a small explosion...
Posted by Neighbor
a resident of Meadow Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:39 pm
a resident of Meadow Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Whatever it was is no more, there was a loud bang possibly the bomb squad doing their job. The helicopter has now left, excitement over.
Posted by ag
a resident of Barron Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:39 pm
a resident of Barron Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Why isn't anyone taking this more seriously? Even if it turns out not to be a bomb, I am glad that the police and the bomb squad did take it seriously and evacuate the neighborhood. Just because we live in peaceful Palo Alto does not mean that we are immune to violence.
Posted by kris
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:49 pm
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:49 pm
I'm taking this very seriously. I live a few doors away and I have worried for months that this new development would be a target. It was definitely a bomb and the squad detonated it (you can see it explode on ABC news). Thank you to the SC Bomb Squad!!!!!!!
Posted by paul
a resident of Leland Manor/Garland Drive
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:54 pm
a resident of Leland Manor/Garland Drive
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:54 pm
link to the ABC new story
Web Link
Posted by Still-dont-know-what-it-was
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:56 pm
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:56 pm
The ABC video (you can see it at Web Link ) doesn't indicate whether the explosion in the video is simply the bomb squad's explosives being used to destroy the object, or whether it was an actual bomb.
Posted by Concerned Resident
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:57 pm
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Mar 10, 2009 at 3:57 pm
At 3:15 the package was detonated. Here's the video link: Web Link
It's terrible that a high school was targeted.
Posted by Jules
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:14 pm
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:14 pm
KGO claims it was "near Palo Alto high school". Poor wording. Should be "near a high school in Palo Alto."
Posted by Laurie
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:21 pm
a resident of Charleston Gardens
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:21 pm
The high school was not targeted, nor was the JCC. The package was in front of one of the Loral buildings. They evacuated the high school at 3pm so the kids parents could pick them up without having to drive on Fabian way.
Posted by samuel
a resident of Stanford
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:29 pm
a resident of Stanford
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:29 pm
From the video it looks like an innocent package that was blown up to be on the safe side.Probably wise in these times and a good excercise for the PAPD
[Portion removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
Posted by ag
a resident of Barron Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:41 pm
a resident of Barron Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:41 pm
It may simply have been in front the Loral site so it would not be noticed.
Posted by Kayheillah
a resident of Mountain View
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:46 pm
a resident of Mountain View
on Mar 10, 2009 at 4:46 pm
I was inside the school next to it. I was freaky >.>
Posted by Soloman
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Mar 10, 2009 at 5:03 pm
a resident of Charleston Meadows
on Mar 10, 2009 at 5:03 pm
Why does the bomb squad need to ride in on a segway? Can't they walk?
Posted by Phil
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Mar 10, 2009 at 5:09 pm
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Mar 10, 2009 at 5:09 pm
makes for better tv
Posted by Susan
a resident of Palo Verde
on Mar 10, 2009 at 6:45 pm
a resident of Palo Verde
on Mar 10, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Soloman,
I believe that the bomb squad personnel ride on Segways because their safety gear is very heavy, not well ventilated, and very restrictive. The Segways can get them in and out; faster than their own two feet which increases safety.
These guys risk their lives for us, so if the Segway makes their jobs less risky and less of a physical burden, then that's a small price for the public to pay. Another way to think about it is that a fleet of Segways costs the public less than one officer who suffers a back injury, heat stroke or heart attack!
Posted by Sharon
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 6:53 pm
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 6:53 pm
If you are on foot you can get out of the faster.
Police should be in good shape, up to military standards, if they need additional stuff they can put it in a SUV or a cart. The sharp edge is handled by robots as in the video.
Segways are useless, they do not help cardiovascular health nor fitness.
Bike, Walk or Run, Segways are white elephants and expensive door stops.
Posted by Walter_E_Wallis
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 7:21 pm
Walter_E_Wallis is a registered user.
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 7:21 pm
Walter_E_Wallis is a registered user.
Since the preferred method of neutralizing a suspected explosive device is with Waldos or burning, I asked a demo friend why they usually blew them up. He said it was because boom is more fun. The down side is that some binary agents require an explosion to mix and disperse them.
Posted by adrian cerda
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 7:35 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Hello i am a student at the school that had to be "evacuated". they kept us in the school all day crammed in the small cafeteria. it was not all that bad there was only 50-60 of us. i was not worried one bit i trust todays technology and am glad that we live on the cutting edge. I still would like to know what was in the box, and why they shut down fabian way. they really did not evacuate us the escorted us to a place where we were to picked up. for a while i thought it might be a hate crime, being that today is a Jewish holiday ( Purim ). all in all i wished i was better informed. this is my insight on what happened and i am adrian cerda
thank you
oh if you have more pictures i would love to see them>
Posted by PA35
a resident of Palo Verde
on Mar 10, 2009 at 8:31 pm
a resident of Palo Verde
on Mar 10, 2009 at 8:31 pm
All the snide comments about Palo Alto and police sicken me. This was a serious problem and the right people dealt with it.
Perhaps those of you who think it's a joke would like to have suspicious packages with nasty notes ignored if and when they are in front of your house.
Posted by sharon
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 8:35 pm
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 8:35 pm
It would be a good idea to control the hysteria until the facts are in.
This may be nothing,gang related to the recent arrests, who knows at this point.
The forensics will reveal the facts, till then get on with your life.
If it had been a big deal the PAPD would have done the automated call routine.
Posted by adrian cerda
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 8:41 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 8:41 pm
very true and the snide comments are unneeded they kept our society safe if it kille someone then the comments why didn't they stop.
Posted by Dana from Kehillah
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:13 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:13 pm
Hi fellow Kehillah students and other readers!
I'm glad to see that everyone seems to have gotten home safely.
Just wondering, has anyone been able to find the pics of them evacuating us from Kehillah today? If so, please let me know.
As for what happened, I hope that it wasn't a hate crime and that whoever did it was not targeting the Jewish community in that area.
Posted by RS
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:40 pm
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:40 pm
So why a Segway.
The suit weighs about 80lbs, and the staging area for this type of response is usually a distance away. The segway is not going to create a lot of vibration approaching the device.
Seems like a good solution to me.
Posted by Michael
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:42 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:42 pm
the "bomb" didnt have any explosives in it(abc news) and it was just made to look like a bomb, and they evacuated us as a precaution, btw our cafeteria is pretty big, plus i actually think that by "pigs" the person meant jews.
Posted by Tim
a resident of Crescent Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:54 pm
a resident of Crescent Park
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:54 pm
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
Posted by Sharon
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:59 pm
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 10, 2009 at 9:59 pm
The term " pigs" in the USA is the traditional insulting term directed at the police, since the 60s and now.
Segways may work for people who have PDD because they can carry their oxygen tanks with them.
Most towns do not allow segways on sidewalks so it is a non starter.
Palo Alto does not permit them on sidewalks for example,nor does SF
Posted by sam
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 10:22 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 10:22 pm
this sounds like it should be an episode of the office where something really minimal happens and all the coddled people think it's the most traumatic experience of their lives. personally i would have preferred it was on some test day but that's just me.
Posted by Jacob
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 10:40 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 10:40 pm
I like how all us kehillah students are on here. I knew nothing would happen.
Posted by Resident
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Mar 10, 2009 at 11:10 pm
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Mar 10, 2009 at 11:10 pm
It would have been a useful time to enact CANS just to make us use a different route if we needed to get to 101, or Costco or somewhere.
This CANS is not being used effectively as there have been several incidents where it could have provided us with useful information to help us make alternative choices in good times.
Posted by Michael
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 11:45 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 10, 2009 at 11:45 pm
yea I know pigs is reffered to cops but the bomb probably had nothing to do with cops who knows... It may have also reffered to us jews since during wwII nazis called jews swine which means pig and then again the person plotting the bb may have been a fired worker at loral who was directing it towards his ex-boss and ex-coworkers, I hope whoever that is gets caught cause it's scary going to school just knowing someone has an intention to blow you up.
Posted by KT
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:30 am
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:30 am
I realize the police were doing their job to protect us from a potential explosive device, but could they have figured out if it wasn't a bomb before blowing it up? Weren't they interested in checking it for finger prints so to determine the identity of the loser who put it there? I am so glad that noone got hurt today and thankful to the security guard whose keen observation noticed this package! Bravo. Hopefully this will be the last one, but we (as a community) need to keep our eyes open for suspicious activity!!!! And it would probably be a good idea to keep security high at the JCC, just in case this nonsense is targeted to the jewish community!
Posted by Live Near Fabian
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 10:19 am
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 10:19 am
KT,
If a very brief preliminary examination reveals that a package might be a bomb, then one would be a fool to try to mess with it forensically. That's a good way to get yourself killed.
Forensics after the fact aren't perfect, but they're a lot better than dead police officers.
Unless you, KT, are volunteering to handle what could be a live bomb. Get back to us on that.
Posted by Sylvia
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 11:19 am
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 11:19 am
I agree with PA35. It appears the system worked, no one was hurt, and snarky comments about city workers are out of place.
Posted by Greg
a resident of Downtown North
on Mar 11, 2009 at 11:58 am
a resident of Downtown North
on Mar 11, 2009 at 11:58 am
I agree that the police seem to have done their job by the book. They minimized the risk to everyone and no one was hurt. What else could you ask for?
Posted by riite aid
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:02 pm
a resident of Evergreen Park
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:02 pm
[Post removed by Palo Alto Online staff.]
Posted by Sally
a resident of another community
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:03 pm
a resident of another community
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:03 pm
My best friend works in that neighborhood and I would like to thank the Palo Alto Police and their Bomb Squad for taking care of this situation as quickly and as safely as possible. Bomb or no bomb, it is a terrifying thing to have happen and thank heavens there are people who are willing to risk their lives for the rest of us.
My "other community" is Oregon.
Posted by Brendan
a resident of South of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:08 pm
a resident of South of Midtown
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:08 pm
What if the package had contained a biological agent? What purpose would blowing it up have, then? Hopefully, the detailed procedures used...when they become available, will explain everything.
"Interesting times", eh?
Posted by OhlonePar
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:50 pm
a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis
on Mar 11, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Segways seem reasonable to me instead of this ridiculous sniping about how our police ought to be. Yeesh. Segways aren't that expensive for pete's sake.
Posted by Hello?
a resident of Green Acres
on Mar 11, 2009 at 3:54 pm
a resident of Green Acres
on Mar 11, 2009 at 3:54 pm
The Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department Bomb Squad detonated the package at about 3:15 p.m. Police determined the device was not a bomb after analyzing the remnants, Burns said.
Posted by Greg
a resident of Downtown North
on Mar 11, 2009 at 8:26 pm
a resident of Downtown North
on Mar 11, 2009 at 8:26 pm
So whose name was written on the fake bomb? That information should tell us the motivation of the perpetrator.
Posted by jb
a resident of Leland Manor/Garland Drive
on Mar 11, 2009 at 9:53 pm
a resident of Leland Manor/Garland Drive
on Mar 11, 2009 at 9:53 pm
With our current state of mind, it is a wonderful economy for people with gripes to fake bombs. WE do the rest of the hysteria without a drop of blood ever being shed.
Posted by KT
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 12, 2009 at 12:20 am
a resident of Midtown
on Mar 12, 2009 at 12:20 am
Good point, lives near fabian.....guess i would be a horrible bomb disposal specialist ;-) I just figured if there was any way to tell if it wasn't a bomb then if they could have spared blowing it up perhaps they could have gotten more info about who created it!
Posted by About CANS
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Mar 12, 2009 at 10:56 am
a resident of Adobe-Meadow
on Mar 12, 2009 at 10:56 am
I got a call from CANS at 3:25pm saying avoid the area. To those on the VTA 88 bus alert, a cryptic reroute message was emailed at 2:45pm.
Don't miss out
on the discussion!
Sign up to be notified of new comments on this topic.
Post a comment
Stay informed.
Get the day's top headlines from Palo Alto Online sent to your inbox in the Express newsletter.
Burning just one "old style" light bulb can cost $150 or more per year
By Sherry Listgarten | 12 comments | 3,303 views
Banning the public from PA City Hall
By Diana Diamond | 27 comments | 2,407 views
Pacifica’s first brewery closes its doors
By The Peninsula Foodist | 0 comments | 2,110 views
Holiday Fun in San Francisco- Take the Walking Tour for An Evening of Sparkle!
By Laura Stec | 8 comments | 1,959 views
Premiere! “I Do I Don’t: How to build a better marriage” – Here, a page/weekday
By Chandrama Anderson | 0 comments | 1,558 views
Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund
For the last 30 years, the Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund has given away almost $10 million to local nonprofits serving children and families. 100% of the funds go directly to local programs. It’s a great way to ensure your charitable donations are working at home.
