Hoax bomb found in room of Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin.

[msteel]

Okay, it says here to take everything that's weird and....

 

[Master Yoda]

OK, but, if it was quickly determined it couldn't have been very well made to look like an explosive. If it was it would have been roboted to a point of demolition and then exploded. If it was that easy to figure out, I don't see how it could have been much of a hoax. But if found to be just an intentional hoax then they should throw the book at them. Not funny in this particular time in history.

I think you overestimate the intelligence of the average person. What is obvious to an expert is not always obvious to a regular person especially when it comes to explosives.

This story takes place in a pre 9/11 time, which is probably the reason that reason I only got a phone call from the FBI and was not arrested.

Many moons ago I helped run a paintball field. In addition to the normal "elimination" and "capture the flag" games, we also did scenario style games one of which was aplenty named "terrorist".

What we would do is sound a siren shortly after the lunch break was over. We would gather all the players and hand them an envelope full of intelligence on a terrorist cell. This included maps, photos and instructions on how disarm a bomb they had.

The players would then head out to find the terrorists, eliminate them and disarm the bomb.

For this scenario I built a device that basically consisted of a bunch old old computer parts, wire, a timer, grey Plasticine (to simulate plastic explosive), some blinking lights and a siren held together in a Plexiglas box. You had to enter in a code to the timer before it hit zero or the siren went off and that was the extent of the devices ability.

I will admit that this device looked pretty convincing, but anyone with a lick of electronics or explosives knowledge would take one look at this thing and know that it was a prop.

Unfortunately, the maid that came over to clean my friends apartment had no such knowledge.

She flipped out upon seeing our carefully made prop sitting on my friends coffee table and called 911. The bomb squad responded and knew right away that it was non-functional.

In this day and age it would not surprise me one bit if a volt meter left next to a 1' section of pipe got called in as a bomb.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Just on a sidenote here… On a personal rule, I generally don't report on false bomb threats. That's been the policy of most news organizations that I work with.

Why you ask? Because it just encourages repeat behavior. It's people just looking for attention. Or trying to screw up the works of society.

The general copy it is unless it's ridiculously newsworthy or somehow screws everything up in the world, otherwise I ignore it.

 

[Nubs70]

I don't think that is the case. The manager was clearly responding to reporter questions, and the fact that a refurb is underway, and the hoax was in a refurb room, makes it relevant.

Probably not even a hoax bomb. Good possibility it was a map gas cylinder left by a plumber who was sweating new copper.

 

[Timekeeper]

On this note, I will be proposing to the Florida Legislature:

Florida Statutes § 790.1652 - Announcement or construction of “hoax attraction” prohibited; penalties

(1) For the purposes of this section, “hoax attraction” means any theme park ride or show or combination thereof that by its design, construction, content, or characteristics appears to be, or to contain, or is represented to be or to contain, a new theme park attraction as defined in this chapter, but is, in fact, an overlay or imitation of a previously existing attraction, or contains no combination of new ride vehicles, ride path, track, props, decorations, theme, or story-line, as was represented.

(2) Any person who, on behalf of a theme park, manufactures, possesses, sells, delivers, sends, mails, displays, publicly announces, threatens to publicly announce, attempts to publicly announce, or conspires to publicly announce, or who makes any artistic renderings or illustrations readily accessible to others, a hoax attraction commits a felony of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

(3) Any person who, without the intent to merely improve the quality of a previously existing attraction, on behalf of a theme park, alters, modifies, transforms, demolishes, threatens to demolish, attempts to demolish, or conspires to demolish, a previously existing attraction for the purpose of creating a hoax attraction, or for the purpose of generating cooperate or public support for the creation of a hoax attraction commits a felony of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

(4) Any person who commits an offense under this section and, in doing so, disturbs the peace and dignity of the previously existing attraction in a manner that interferes with the original spirit and purpose of the previously existing attraction, or disturbs the theming of any theme park land, area, or other themed geographic designation with a hoax attraction that does not serve a legitimate purpose in the the theme park land, area, or other themed geographic designation where the previously existing attraction was located commits a capital felony, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

 

[ABQ]

Just on a sidenote here… On a personal rule, I generally don't report on false bomb threats. That's been the policy of most news organizations that I work with.

Why you ask? Because it just encourages repeat behavior. It's people just looking for attention. Or trying to screw up the works of society.

The general copy it is unless it's ridiculously newsworthy or somehow screws everything up in the world, otherwise I ignore it.

I figured that was the case from your first post in this thread. It's along the lines of the baseball broadcast NOT showing the idiot fan running across the outfield to slide into 2nd base, as it only encourages knucklehead behaviour.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I think you overestimate the intelligence of the average person. What is obvious to an expert is not always obvious to a regular person especially when it comes to explosives.

Not only did I not overestimate it, that was the point I was making. I used to work, in public transportation in a college town. Many of the drivers would call in the bomb squad if someone left a backpack on the bus. Me, I'd walk up to it, pick it up and open it to find out who lost their backpack.

Now I am and was well aware that backpacks are a common source of dangerous stuff, but, this was in a town that wouldn't have made the 5th page, left side of a newspaper or over three column inches in the same location even if it had been one, even if it had blown up. To small a target for terrorist to waste their energy on. Might they, sure, but in life one needs to play the odds or we all end up in a dead stop.

 

[Victor Kelly]

some people on here have no sense of

some people on here have no sense of humor whatsoever

I really wanted to post the one with an explosion but I thought people could not handle it.

 

[Wisconsin]

I was walking around the Swan and Dolphin properties Tuesday afternoon and came upon the massive response: squad cars, fire trucks, all sorts of specialized vehicles, although nobody seemed very excited about it. The rumor at the time was a haz mat spill...

 

[twilight mitsuk]

remember the incident with the tire monitor on a bus a few years ago?

 

[PhotoDave219]

remember the incident with the tire monitor on a bus a few years ago?

Entirely different incident.

That involved a telemetry box that was temporarily on a bus for a test that either no one ever removed or everyone forgot about.

That was a false alarm but paralyzed Disney transportation for an evening.

 

[PhotoDave219]

I was walking around the Swan and Dolphin properties Tuesday afternoon and came upon the massive response: squad cars, fire trucks, all sorts of specialized vehicles, although nobody seemed very excited about it. The rumor at the time was a haz mat spill...

No, it was a suspicious device that turned out to be nothing serious.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Not only did I not overestimate it, that was the point I was making. I used to work, in public transportation in a college town. Many of the drivers would call in the bomb squad if someone left a backpack on the bus. Me, I'd walk up to it, pick it up and open it to find out who lost their backpack.

Now I am and was well aware that backpacks are a common source of dangerous stuff, but, this was in a town that wouldn't have made the 5th page, left side of a newspaper or over three column inches in the same location even if it had been one, even if it had blown up. To small a target for terrorist to waste their energy on. Might they, sure, but in life one needs to play the odds or we all end up in a dead stop.

When I was a CM in 2004, I once came upon an unattended bag at the hub. A custodial CM was next to me, we had a 30 second convo. He said I was supposed to call it in. Me? I decided that it was 99.9% likely someone just forgot it, went over, looked inside, saw it was normal and walked it up to guest relations. Why? Because why needlessly alarm the park-going public?

 

[Tom]

When I was a CM in 2004, I once came upon an unattended bag at the hub. A custodial CM was next to me, we had a 30 second convo. He said I was supposed to call it in. Me? I decided that it was 99.9% likely someone just forgot it, went over, looked inside, saw it was normal and walked it up to guest relations. Why? Because why needlessly alarm the park-going public?

I would have done the same. There's a difference between an unattended bag, and a suspicious bag. There are many reasons for a bag to simply be unattended, and those are in far greater number than the reasons the bag COULD be suspicious. It's a judgement call, and you're either wrong and blow up (meh), or you're right and don't stop the operations of an entire resort or scare thousands of families and children unnecessarily.

 

[dreamfinder]

I would have done the same. There's a difference between an unattended bag, and a suspicious bag. There are many reasons for a bag to simply be unattended, and those are in far greater number than the reasons the bag COULD be suspicious. It's a judgement call, and you're either wrong and blow up (meh), or you're right and don't stop the operations of an entire resort or scare thousands of families and children unnecessarily.

But, But, But the alphabet soup tells us "See Something, Say Something!", I hear it over the loud speaker and see posters every time I'm at the airport. And we know they are never wrong.....

 

[Nemo14]

When I was a CM in 2004, I once came upon an unattended bag at the hub. A custodial CM was next to me, we had a 30 second convo. He said I was supposed to call it in. Me? I decided that it was 99.9% likely someone just forgot it, went over, looked inside, saw it was normal and walked it up to guest relations. Why? Because why needlessly alarm the park-going public?

After the Boston bombings though, I'm much more suspicious of unattended bags.

 

[Timekeeper]

Anyone who has frequented or worked at the local theme parks has probably seen, at one time or another, huge piles of unattended bags and backpacks, 20 or 30 of them, stacked up against a wall near an attraction entrance by a Brazilian or similar type of tour group. I recall taking a picture of a large pile of backpacks near the entrance of Tower of Terror because it was an interesting image. It's not much different from a sea of parked strollers that contain guest bags.

 

[Goofyernmost]

But, But, But the alphabet soup tells us "See Something, Say Something!", I hear it over the loud speaker and see posters every time I'm at the airport. And we know they are never wrong.....

There are certain places, a large airport being one of them, that I would not chance it. Really there is no logical reason for a bag to be unattended in places like that. Yes, people are stupid sometimes, but, it's less likely in a place where you are going to see unattended stuff on a daily basis. A Theme Park and a City Bus is an example of places where that is most common.