>>8635652 (pb
(I understand this story is old, but what were foreign “students” who had just graduated i)n chemical engineering doing scouting the water supply for Boston in the middle of the night in winter? Apparently, nothing. But I have never forgotten how this made me feel when I read it. Watch the water is a good policy. Now that we also know that a water supply can be contaminated by a virus that causes pneumonia, it is good to pay attention.)
Late-night trespassing at Quabbin by foreign students triggers precautionary state-wide terrorism alert; police say no crime or criminal intent detected
Updated Mar 24, 2019; Posted May 15, 2013
WARE - Massachusetts State Police announced Tuesday that it has notified the FBI and state terrorism officials after learning that seven people stopped for trespassing at the Quabbin Reservoir just after midnight Tuesday turned out to be from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.
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Still, he said, state police have alerted officials with the FBI office in Springfield and the Commonwealth Fusion Center, which is the state's centralized hub for collecting and analyzing data related to possible terrorism and threats to public safety.
Procopio said the state police would also be increasing patrols at Quabbin and at other water supplies around the state. The Quabbin is the major water supplier for the eastern part of the state, but also supplies water to Chicopee, Wilbraham and part of South Hadley. When full, the Quabbin holds 412 billion gallons of water.
“Further investigation is being undertaken because of the late hour when they were observed, their curious explanation for why they wanted to see the reservoir and the fact that they were in an area marked no trespassing,” Procopio said.
No one is allowed inside Quabbin an hour after sunset.
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The group of five men and two women were spotted by state police at about 12:30 Tuesday walking away from the reservoir toward two vehicles. A trooper stopped them and cited them for violating a posted no-trespassing zone.
The group told police they were recent college graduates. Some were residing in the Amherst – Northampton area, while others were from Cambridge and New York City. All said they studied chemical engineering and they came out to see the Quabbin because it was in line with their education and career interests, Procopio said.
https://www.masslive.com/news/2013/05/late-night_trespassing_at_quab.html