Flood of False Alarms Follow Times Square Plot

A string of terrorism-related false alarms rippled across the U.S. less than a week after the failed car bombing in New York City's Times Square.

With tensions running high after Faisal Shahzad allegedly left an explosives-laden SUV in New York's bustling theater district, Americans have been vigilant against perceived threats.

Special Section: Terrorism in the U.S.

Late Wednesday, a U-Haul truck was ditched near the toll plaza on New York City's Robert F. Kennedy Bridge. A bridge authority officer smelled gasoline and saw a man running from the vehicle, prompting NYPD's bomb squad and other emergency responders to rush to the scene. Nothing dangerous was found in the truck.

According to CBS station WCBS-TV, the driver was waved to the side of the road by Port Authority officials for a routine search and may have fled because the truck was stolen.

"False Match" Shows No-Fly List Isn't Perfect

Thursday morning, portions of Seattle-Tacoma airport were evacuated after an employee noticed smoke coming from a passenger's bag. Authorities detonated the bag and found the smoke was caused by a faulty battery charger, but not before hundreds of passengers were cleared from the baggage area and four flights were delayed.

Late Thursday morning a Greyhound bus on its way from Bangor, Maine, to New York City stopped in Portsmouth, N.H., after someone called 911 to report an explosive device found aboard. The bomb scare shut down Portsmouth's city center as passengers were let off the bus one at a time under the watch of a sharpshooter. Police were interviewing the driver and remained in contact with the one person on board by cell phone in the afternoon.

Later Thursday, an Emirates airlines flight leaving New York was temporarily delayed after two passengers were falsely matched with the government no-fly list. The passengers were eventually cleared, allowing the Dubai-bound flight to depart from John F. Kennedy International airport soon after.

The episode conjured memories of Shahzad's arrest, which also came aboard an Emirates airlines flight heading to Dubai. Shahzad managed to board the plane Monday despite being added to the no-fly list earlier in the day, prompting changes to the policy, which call for airlines to update their no-fly databases every two hours instead of every 24 hours.

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