Bike Band Sticker Causes Bomb Scare

[despondent]

link (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060303/ap_on_fe_st/bomb_scare_punk_band;_ylt=AvnNHcCfZc5cDuzd4hAFKA_t iBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--)
A sticker on a bicycle that said "this bike is a pipe bomb" caused a scare Thursday at Ohio University that shut down four buildings before authorities learned the message was the name of a punk rock band, a university spokesman said.

The sticker on the bike chained outside the university-owned Oasis restaurant near the center of campus attracted the attention of a police officer about 5:30 a.m., spokesman Jack Jeffery said.

Police blocked streets around the restaurant and the Columbus police bomb squad came from about 65 miles away.

The bomb experts hit the bike with a high-pressure spray of water, then pried it apart with a hydraulic device normally used to rescue accident victims trapped in cars, acting Athens Fire Chief Ken Gilbraith said. Once they had it open, they saw there was no bomb.

The buildings, including some classroom facilities, were reopened after a couple hours.

Dean of Students Terry Hogan urged students to be more careful when showing support for the band from Pensacola, Fla.

University police interviewed the bike's owner then released him, Jeffery said. Police are still investigating.

An e-mail seeking comment was sent to Plan-It-X Records, listed on a Web site for the band as its record label. The label does not have a published phone number.

[Chomp Samba]

What a retarded name for a band. You know they suck with a name like that.

[wileE]

It is a pretty stupid band name. Way to overreact, too.

[IPrayForSound]

Actually, the band is pretty decent. And campus rent-a-cops are pretty dumb. Who's gonna print up a single vinyl sticker and lable a homemade bomb as such?

[Homsar]

Who noticed that?
Who would notice something like that?

[bjk15]

i don't think it is overreacting. and i'm glad that the security cops were actually alert to something as mundane as a sticker. i do subscribe to the better safe than sorry thing, so maybe that's why. and yeah, the band is obviously just dying for attention. postfem still works there doesn't she?

[gwar469]

[
then pried it apart with a hydraulic device normally used to rescue accident victims trapped in cars,

they used the Jaws of Life on the bike? how ridiculous is that?!

i wonder how they found it was the name of a band. did some kid come up and say, "uh, dude, that's the name of a band." what about the kid whose bike it was? what do you think if you walk up to your bike and see the cops just totally demolishing it?

[frizgolf]

i don't think it is overreacting. and i'm glad that the security cops were actually alert to something as mundane as a sticker. i do subscribe to the better safe than sorry thing, so maybe that's why. and yeah, the band is obviously just dying for attention. postfem still works there doesn't she?
Nah, she works at Oberlin.

[bjk15]

they used the Jaws of Life on the bike? how ridiculous is that?!

i wonder how they found it was the name of a band. did some kid come up and say, "uh, dude, that's the name of a band." what about the kid whose bike it was? what do you think if you walk up to your bike and see the cops just totally demolishing it?
have you ever heard of that band? the kid may be from pensacola and hence was the only reason that he knew them. besides, how many college kids are up at 5:30am, let alone 7:00am? personally, i would think it was hilarious if i was a friend of the kid who that happened to. i'd be like, that's what you get dumbass, i told you it was stupid to do that, didn't i, dumbass.

[gwar469]

have you ever heard of that band? the kid may be from pensacola and hence was the only reason that he knew them. besides, how many college kids are up at 5:30am, let alone 7:00am? personally, i would think it was hilarious if i was a friend of the kid who that happened to. i'd be like, that's what you get dumbass, i told you it was stupid to do that, didn't i, dumbass.

never heard of them. but, i'd be the same as you, and totally rip on the kid if he was my friend. you kind of wonder if the kid even has any interest in the band, or if he just put on the sticker to cause a stir like the one that occured.

[markalot]

I'm going with stupid band name and I'm not going to blame the rent-o-cops. I mean if they hadn't done anything and it blew up people would be asking why they didn't believe the sticker.

no win situation.

[teribl sob stry]

Who's gonna print up a single vinyl sticker and lable a homemade bomb as such?

that's exactly what i was thinking!

ever heard of post-its? notebook paper? sharpies?

[aqualou]

Actually, the band is pretty decent. And campus rent-a-cops are pretty dumb. Who's gonna print up a single vinyl sticker and lable a homemade bomb as such?
the proof is in the pudding. i never really knew what that ment, but . . . mmmmmm . . . puddin'.

[jfurnie]

It's like when Woody Guthrie wrote "This Machine Kills Fascists" on his guitar I thought it was some kind of super secret weapon. Like maybe it opened up all Desperado style and had machine guns inside. Turns out it was just a guitar.

[something]

I concur, this bike is a pipe bomb is a good band and actually, they've been around awhile, i'm just surprised to hear folks on this board HAVEN'T heard of them, at this point it's become something of a cliche to put those stickers on your bike. :cool:

[Homsar]

They probably did it on purpose after clearing people away. Maybe it was one of those robots.

[Phreon]

Um....am I the only one wondering why the bomb squad was shooting a high pressure water cannon at and then crushing the bike they though was EXPLOSIVE with the jaws of life??

"Hmm...this might be a bomb. Let's jolt it violently and then apply cutting force to it with the Jaws. The steel blades cutting the CroMoly frame couldn't possibly cause a spark or otherwise set off a dangerous explosive".

How often to folks who build real pipe bombs put big signs on them saying, "Pipe bomb here"? Pipe bombs wouldn't be much of a threat if they were labled as such, would they? When was the last time you heard about a (surviving) pipe bomb victim saying, "If I had only paid attention to the label, I would have known it was a pipe bomb"?

Or was the bomb squad pissed they were called out for nothing and decided to ruin the kid's bike to "set an example"?

Phreon

[drougan]

Actually, the band is pretty decent. And campus rent-a-cops are pretty dumb. Who's gonna print up a single vinyl sticker and lable a homemade bomb as such?

Someone looking to cause a panic would certainly go so far as to do that. Though I personally would assume the owner of the bike was trying to be witty first, and not actually someone looking to blow something up.

[aqualou]

come on people. having a sticker saying "this bike is a pipe bomb" and it actually being a pipe bomb is like going to iraq and following the signs that say "road to weapons of mass destruction". this all reeks of a bugs bunny cartoon. stupid coyote.

[the happy prole]

Yeah, shooting those water disrupter cannons at pipe bombs is standard procedure (I think). At least I know that many bomb squads have them.

As for the note, the person may have just wanted to create a lot of property damage and left the note as a warning. You'd be stupid to ignore it. If you're wrong some kid lost a bike. If you're right and do nothing, people could die.

I don't think the campus cops did anything wrong.

[aqualou]

national publicity for $70 . . . what a bargain! :D