What would you do? Who would ya report it to?

[SkyHog]

I am in Sky Harbor Airport, sitting in the Route 66 Cafe. Behind me sits a bag, which is plugged into the wall. There is no one around the bag, and I've asked the people nearby if it is there's and they all say no.

I am about 85% positive it is just a laptop bag sitting against the wall, charging, but no one can identify the owner....

What do you do? I don't really want to involve TSA, because I hate validating their jobs.

 

[kevin47881]

You should report it Nick. If you don't want to report it to TSA (and I understand your reasoning), just report it to local law enforcement inside the compound (um, I mean terminal).

 

[KennyFlys]

Once you report it, all life as you now know it will come to an end in the terminal. Not because there is really a problem in the bag but because they can't simply exercise caution and inspect the dang thing without interrupting every flight and passenger for several hours.

 

[SCCutler]

...depends, Nick... you want to get home... tonight?

 

[poadeleted20]

Having had friends nearly blown up by terrorist bombs (I'm talking about just having turned the corner away from it when it went off, and being knocked flat anyway), I'm rather sensitive to the issue, and feel there is no choice but to bring it to the attention of law enforcement. About all you can hope is that the nincompoop who left it there didn't back up his data, and it will all be gone after the EOD folks take it out on the other side of the runway and perform a controlled detonation.

 

[TMetzinger]

I'm with Ron - call the locals.

 

[Areeda]

I third.

Controlled detonation of a laptip left plugged in with no one to vouch for it.

Joe

 

[Joe B]

Having had friends nearly blown up by terrorist bombs (I'm talking about just having turned the corner away from it when it went off, and being knocked flat anyway), I'm rather sensitive to the issue, and feel there is no choice but to bring it to the attention of law enforcement. About all you can hope is that the nincompoop who left it there didn't back up his data, and it will all be gone after the EOD folks take it out on the other side of the runway and perform a controlled detonation.

Same here. The son of our close friends was one of the two survivors on the top deck of the bus involved in the '05 London bombings. That and Madrid have taught us that one shouldn't screw around with abandoned bags.

Regards,
Joe

 

[gprellwitz]

I work at a college, right next to the student center. If I reported a bag every time no one was there claiming it, I, and the rest of the staff, would go mad! That said, it is a safe and prudent thing to do, and after the first few bags were disposed of "judiciously", I bet there would be far fewer incidents!

OTOH, the terrorists, and they do exist, count on our fear of causing problems. Where is the line between caution and paranoia? I think that's what Nick's getting at!

 

[ausrere]

I agree. Report it. Better safe than sorry. We've had three incidents in the Austin area in the past week where suspicious packages were reported (not at the airport, but around the city). Two were found to have explosive devices in them. It happens.

 

[SCCutler]

I agree. Report it. Better safe than sorry. We've had three incidents in the Austin area in the past week where suspicious packages were reported (not at the airport, but around the city). Two were found to have explosive devices in them. It happens.

Really!? (Wrote the fellow with a beloved nephew at UT...)

 

[Cap'n Jack]

What was the outcome?

People shouldn't be leaving their laptop bags unattended. Even before 9/11, you were asking for it to be stolen if you left it sitting around.

...depends, Nick... you want to get home... tonight?

Wait until your plane is pushed back, then call the authorities. You've done your duty, you're not delayed, and everyone's happy (except the poor suckers departing after you)

 

[poadeleted20]

I work at a college, right next to the student center. If I reported a bag every time no one was there claiming it, I, and the rest of the staff, would go mad!

At the same time, the folks who constitute the most significant threat aren't making college student centers a top priority target the way they are with public transportation in general and air carrier airports in particular.

That said, it is a safe and prudent thing to do, and after the first few bags were disposed of "judiciously", I bet there would be far fewer incidents!

You betcha!

OTOH, the terrorists, and they do exist, count on our fear of causing problems. Where is the line between caution and paranoia? I think that's what Nick's getting at!

Understood, but leaving a bag unattended is just asking to get it stolen, anyway, so you have to be some kind of fool to start with if you do that.

 

[ausrere]

Really!? (Wrote the fellow with a beloved nephew at UT...)

One device was in a package found in the parking lot of a women's clinic. They've made an arrest on that one. Not sure the motive, but the clinic did do abortions, so I'm sure that's high on the list of suspected motives. The other was found on the side of the road in a neighborhood . Last I heard, they didn't think the two were related. Apparently the devices were totally different. And they have no clue the target. No arrests in that one.

The third one, the false alarm, was a package left outside an adult video store. One can only imagine what it turned out to be, the news just said it wasn't an explosive device.

 

[SCCutler]

The third one, the false alarm, was a package left outside an adult video store. One can only imagine what it turned out to be, the news just said it wasn't an explosive device.

Nyuck, nyuck... depends upon how it's used...

Still, bombs, in Austin. No bueno.

Not getting political, but I have always found it kinda bizarre that someone (anyone) would try to make a "statement" about protecting life, by destroying life.

 

[wsuffa]

I am in Sky Harbor Airport, sitting in the Route 66 Cafe. Behind me sits a bag, which is plugged into the wall. There is no one around the bag, and I've asked the people nearby if it is there's and they all say no.

I am about 85% positive it is just a laptop bag sitting against the wall, charging, but no one can identify the owner....

What do you do? I don't really want to involve TSA, because I hate validating their jobs.

Your call.

However, I am aware of a story where a guy found a ginzu knife in the seatback pocket of an airliner recently. Being a good citizen, he reported it. The plane was emptied and searched, and he was taken in for questioning. He was questioned for a good 2+ hours, and then received follow-up calls. They treated him as if they suspected him of planting it. He also received several pat-down searches, and when he was finally released to go get his connectng flight (which, of course, he missed and had to take a later flight), he was graced by the presence of an FAM next to him for the flight. He also got the pat-down and FAM on his return flight.

Bottom line: he was treated as the accused just for being a good citizen.

With all due respect to the other posters here, as long as the person making the report is treated as a criminal himself, there is NO, I repeat NO, reason or incentive for anyone to report anything suspicious.

Given that, I would ignore it, especially if you reasonably think it's a laptop.

 

[etsisk]

The third one, the false alarm, was a package left outside an adult video store. One can only imagine what it turned out to be, the news just said it wasn't an explosive device.

I can see it now ...

Scene: On sidewalk outside of adult bookstore - a man stands there and a woman walks up and talks to him:

Woman: Harold? What are you doing HERE??

Harold: Me? What? Oh, nothing! I was just walking by on my way to meet you, dear!

Woman: Well, what's that you are carrying, then?

Harold: Uh, this? Um, nothing - it was on the sidewalk and I was just moving it so no-one tripped over it! (places bag back on sidewalk, next to the building out of the way)

Harold: You ready for lunch? I know this great restaurant just up ...

(Couple walks away, woman glances back at bag, suspiciously, while Harold talks, non-stop)

 

[gibbons]

With all due respect to the other posters here, as long as the person making the report is treated as a criminal himself, there is NO, I repeat NO, reason or incentive for anyone to report anything suspicious.

Given that, I would ignore it, especially if you reasonably think it's a laptop.

I'm with Bill on this. I would ignore it.

 

[SkyHog]

Well, it was a non issue. About 30 minutes after I posted this, someone came over and picked up the laptop and walked away. He apparantly plugged it in, left the diner and came back later.

He's a moron, but I feel I did the right thing by keeping an eye on it and being alert to something happening, but not reporting it.

If I had to do it over again? Who knows, I might report it. This just "felt" safe, ya know what I mean?

 

[Michael]

If I had to do it over again? Who knows, I might report it. This just "felt" safe, ya know what I mean?

Interpreted as : I didn't want to miss my flight.
If it were me, i would have opened it up to see what was in it. If it were ticking...Id run then call police. Glad it turned out ok.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Not getting political, but I have always found it kinda bizarre that someone (anyone) would try to make a "statement" about protecting life, by destroying life.

Extremists come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and religions.

I think that's all I can say without getting banished to the Spin Zone.

 

[Obi Heed Kenobi]

Interpreted as : I didn't want to miss my flight.
If it were me, i would have opened it up to see what was in it. If it were ticking...Id run then call police. Glad it turned out ok.

But what if it's set to go off when you open it?

 

[ScottM]

Having had friends nearly blown up by terrorist bombs (I'm talking about just having turned the corner away from it when it went off, and being knocked flat anyway), I'm rather sensitive to the issue, and feel there is no choice but to bring it to the attention of law enforcement. About all you can hope is that the nincompoop who left it there didn't back up his data, and it will all be gone after the EOD folks take it out on the other side of the runway and perform a controlled detonation.

I agree with Ron. I was almost blown up by a bomb in London. I was one block away from Herrods when the IRA detonated a bomb there in the earl 80's.

Report it

Another story to add.

I was in Narita in the 1990s and that kid who spray painted cars in Singapore was coming through the airport. All the news crews where there to film him transfer flights so I hung around to watch. A guy limped up and threw out a very old camcorder. He just set it into the trash bin. Who does that? I told the first security policeperson I could find of exactly what I saw and pointed out the guy who did it. They detained him cleared the area around the gate and determined whether it was a real threat. It wasn't but the police also thought it quit suspicious. Better safe than sorry in those situations I say.

 

[judypilot]

Well, if Nick had opened it and it turned out to be a bomb, he would have performed a service by shielding everyone with his body.

This is a toughie. I've been in exactly the same situation. Sometimes I've reported it, sometimes I haven't. The times I have, panic did not ensue. The powers-that-be spent some time looking for the owner. However, what I have pretty much always done is move away behind a pillar or some other protection.

What amazes me is how often people leave their stuff. 30 minutes--that guy has got a lot of trust in his fellow humans, and it would appear that the trust is justified, wouldn't it? His stuff was still there. I recall wistfully the days when you could do that sort of thing and never lose anything. Twice in my life I've left my wallet somewhere (once in a phone booth on the street!) Both times I've gotten it back intact. Of course the phone booth incident was in a small rural town. The other time was in an airport restaurant.

Judy

 

[poadeleted20]

I agree with Ron. I was almost blown up by a bomb in London. I was one block away from Herrods when the IRA detonated a bomb there in the earl 80's.

You must have walked right past the folks I referred to above, who had just walked out of Harrod's and around the corner when it went bang.

 

[poadeleted20]

Sometimes I've reported it, sometimes I haven't.

I've found that usually standing up and saying loudly, "Does anyone know whose bag this is?" gets the bag owner back on the spot in a heartbeat. I've seen this happen at Heathrow, almost always an American leaving the bag, and invariably all the Brits in the vicinity gave the Yank the same look the Queen gave GWB when he boggled the year she visited America for the bicentennial.