Bomb Squad logs a find

[+Ma & Pa]

I could not find this item anywhere else in the forum. Hope it was not posted previously.

 

http://coord.info/GLFRZ4Q6

 

.

[+Shinook & White Juan]

amazing

[+K13]

I want to know what was used for the cache log. It survived being blown up by the bomb squad. I have heard of Write-in-the-Rain paper, but that log must be something awesome.

[jholly]

I want to know what was used for the cache log. It survived being blown up by the bomb squad. I have heard of Write-in-the-Rain paper, but that log must be something awesome.

See thread on slate sheet logbook.

[+MartyBartfast]

Surely he should have posted an NM?

[Mr.Yuck]

Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

It was a Police Officer with a Geocaching.com account, but a VERY casual Geocacher. Probably has no clue what a "NM" is. Dude joined way back in 2001!!! Had not previously logged a find since 2006. Good thing he remembered his password though.

[+humboldt flier]

Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

Might have considered it, however, there is such negativity surrounding NM /NA logs they might have been fearful of reprisals and log deletions from the CO **(just sayin)**

[+WarNinjas]

That is awesome!

[+KatnissRue]

I heard there was one near where I live that was archived due to a bomb squad scare. It's what got a few of my friends into Geocaching.

[+msrubble]

Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

Might have considered it, however, there is such negativity surrounding NM /NA logs they might have been fearful of reprisals and log deletions from the CO **(just sayin)**

 

Reprisals against the bomb squad?

[+gpsblake]

[+MartyBartfast]

Years ago I found this tucked into the logbook of a cache in London:

 

 

("The Met" is London Metropolitan Police)

[+Ma & Pa]

 

Fun to see the news report of the cache, the bomb squad and interviews with the muggles

[+KC2WI]

How hard would it be for police to look up geocaches when they get a bomb report? All they would have to do is look on the geocaching map. It would be fairly obvious if there was a geocache in the reported location. Of course it would be possible for someone to place an actual bomb and list it as a cache or put a bomb in a cache but it would be unlikely. Interesting so few law enforcement organizations know nothing about geocaching. This info ought to be part of standard training for bomb squads.

[team tisri]

How hard would it be for police to look up geocaches when they get a bomb report? All they would have to do is look on the geocaching map. It would be fairly obvious if there was a geocache in the reported location. Of course it would be possible for someone to place an actual bomb and list it as a cache or put a bomb in a cache but it would be unlikely. Interesting so few law enforcement organizations know nothing about geocaching. This info ought to be part of standard training for bomb squads.

 

I believe the Metropolitan Police do exactly this with geocaches in sensitive areas of central London.

 

If you've got a large area to cover it becomes increasingly difficult to check every single item against the possibility it's a geocache. Of course even if something is believed to be a geocache the bomb squad have to be a little careful - it's not like it would be difficult to leave something truly nasty and simply write "Geocache - contents harmless" on it.

[mjb]

Hi Folks,

I would be happy to answer any questions I can about our, (Omaha Bomb Squad), response to the Memorial Park cache.

 

Keep in mind that these responses are my responses and are not the official position of the City of Omaha, the Omaha Police Department, or the Omaha Bomb Squad of which I’m a member.

 

Some questions I will not be able to answer with extreme detail because it will compromise operational security and put my life, my team mate’s lives, and of course citizen lives in jeopardy.

 

Question: How hard would it be for police to look up geocaches when they get a bomb report? All they would have to do is look on the geocaching map. It would be fairly obvious if there was a geocache in the reported location. Of course it would be possible for someone to place an actual bomb and list it as a cache or put a bomb in a cache but it would be unlikely. Interesting so few law enforcement organizations know nothing about geocaching. This info ought to be part of standard training for bomb squads.

 

Answer: When a “muggle” reports something as a suspicious device we have to take protective measures to make sure it is truly a Geocache site. How hard would it be for someone to “steal” a known Geocache site and plant something that could harm the next person to find the site? Unfortunately there is no way to prevent criminals and terrorists from taking a fun sport which I to enjoy and making it into something scary!

 

Comment: Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

Answer: It’s been awhile, I joined back in 2001 and have not had an active log until 2006 and of course October 2010. I could look up what a NM is but it would not have changed what I had to do regarding this call.

 

Question: I want to know what was used for the cache log. It survived being blown up by the bomb squad. I have heard of Write-in-the-Rain paper, but that log must be something awesome.

 

Answer: We have many tools available to us when dealing with various situations. We try to use the least destructive method to deal with a suspicious device for various reasons. Believe it or not we can use methods that will “blow a device up” but allow us to reconstruct the device and tell us how it was built, who build it, and how it functioned. On this particular device with the use of a robot and some other confidential tools we were able to “blow up the package” and recover the contents intact. I was on the phone with the cache owner, a very nice person by the way, within hours offering to return the items contained in the cache.

[+J Grouchy]

Hi Folks,

I would be happy to answer any questions I can about our, (Omaha Bomb Squad), response to the Memorial Park cache.

 

Keep in mind that these responses are my responses and are not the official position of the City of Omaha, the Omaha Police Department, or the Omaha Bomb Squad of which I’m a member.

 

Some questions I will not be able to answer with extreme detail because it will compromise operational security and put my life, my team mate’s lives, and of course citizen lives in jeopardy.

 

Question: How hard would it be for police to look up geocaches when they get a bomb report? All they would have to do is look on the geocaching map. It would be fairly obvious if there was a geocache in the reported location. Of course it would be possible for someone to place an actual bomb and list it as a cache or put a bomb in a cache but it would be unlikely. Interesting so few law enforcement organizations know nothing about geocaching. This info ought to be part of standard training for bomb squads.

 

Answer: When a “muggle” reports something as a suspicious device we have to take protective measures to make sure it is truly a Geocache site. How hard would it be for someone to “steal” a known Geocache site and plant something that could harm the next person to find the site? Unfortunately there is no way to prevent criminals and terrorists from taking a fun sport which I to enjoy and making it into something scary!

 

Not to mention the fact that nobody would ever want to make an assumption about an unknown package only to have it turn into a disaster. It's their job to deal with threats seriously, not to protect our little pastime.

[+MartyBartfast]

 

Comment: Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

 

FWIW, that comment was posted by me in jest (hence I added the smiley), it wasn't a serious suggestion

[mjb]

 

Comment: Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

 

FWIW, that comment was posted by me in jest (hence I added the smiley), it wasn't a serious suggestion

 

NP did not upset me in the least bit!

[Rock Chalk]

Very nice of mjb to come here and explain a bit about how his team does things. His "Found It" log certainly ranks among the best I've ever seen!

[+TopShelfRob]

ok I question I'd like to ask, what about it in particular made it suspicious? Or at least suspicious enough to warrant a call to the bomb squad?

[+cheech gang]

ok I question I'd like to ask, what about it in particular made it suspicious? Or at least suspicious enough to warrant a call to the bomb squad?

 

Muggle saw this:

 

[mjb]

ok I question I'd like to ask, what about it in particular made it suspicious? Or at least suspicious enough to warrant a call to the bomb squad?

Good question! When a citizen spots something that they deem to be suspicious they call 911. 911 in turns usually call the police. Police officers come out to look at the suspicious item. If they have any doubts they call the Bomb Squad for a final determination. Officers have been trained to error on the side of caution. There are many dead officers that thought something that someone else thought was suspicious was safe to handle.

Geocachers are looking for a particular item at a very specific location. Because of this when they find a Geocache site they rightfully don’t consider it suspicious. If they are careless in their approach or exit from the site however a “muggle” will snoop around after they are gone and report anything they find as suspicious. The bigger the cache the more likely it will be called in as a suspicious item by a “muggle”.

Those that place caches should follow the guidelines set by geocaching experts to ensure there cache does not cause public alarm and stays fun and active for a long time!

[+wmpastor]

Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

Might have considered it, however, there is such negativity surrounding NM /NA logs they might have been fearful of reprisals and log deletions from the CO **(just sayin)**

I wonder why people seeing something in a tree immediately think "bomb." Like they think that the bad guys are thinking, oooo, here's a strategic tree, I'll blow it up at some future time. For maximum symbolism and panic, I'll blow it up on Arbor Day.

[mjb]

ok I question I'd like to ask, what about it in particular made it suspicious? Or at least suspicious enough to warrant a call to the bomb squad?

 

Muggle saw this:

 

If you look at the photo it certainly looks like the end a pipe bomb to me.

 

You would be surprised how many people in the area make pipe bombs of all sizes from empty Co2 cartridges to full-size 2 liter whoppers. Many view these as fun “firecrackers” that make a crazy loud boom. Most don’t realize that they could lose an arm or leg or even kill themselves if their homemade device prematurely functioned. Almost all don’t realize they are committing a felony by building these destructive devices.

 

The most common scenario we face is a person that lights one of these devices. When it does not function they wisely decide to leave it alone. Unfortunately they don’t call anyone to let them know they have left behind an unexploded device. Later a citizen is out and about and they find the device. Some of them wisely call 911 to report it and eventually we get the call and come out to safely take care of it. Some decide to fiddle with it and are injured bad when it “goes off”.

[mjb]

Surely he should have posted an NM?

 

Might have considered it, however, there is such negativity surrounding NM /NA logs they might have been fearful of reprisals and log deletions from the CO **(just sayin)**

I wonder why people seeing something in a tree immediately think "bomb." Like they think that the bad guys are thinking, oooo, here's a strategic tree, I'll blow it up at some future time. For maximum symbolism and panic, I'll blow it up on Arbor Day.

15 years ago I would have said the same thing however, times have changed and not for the better. Along the same line of thinking, who would have thought an unattended backpack, among hundreds of other bags and packs, at one of the largest public events of the year, the Boston Marathon, would kill 3 people and injure 264 more?

[Luckless]

Interesting fact that the bomb squad says they blow up two to three geocaches a year. Some cities won't allow geocaches to be placed in anything but see through containers (able to see contents).

[+wmpastor]

ok I question I'd like to ask, what about it in particular made it suspicious? Or at least suspicious enough to warrant a call to the bomb squad?

 

Muggle saw this:

 

If you look at the photo it certainly looks like the end a pipe bomb to me.

 

You would be surprised how many people in the area make pipe bombs of all sizes from empty Co2 cartridges to full-size 2 liter whoppers. Many view these as fun “firecrackers” that make a crazy loud boom. Most don’t realize that they could lose an arm or leg or even kill themselves if their homemade device prematurely functioned. Almost all don’t realize they are committing a felony by building these destructive devices.

 

The most common scenario we face is a person that lights one of these devices. When it does not function they wisely decide to leave it alone. Unfortunately they don’t call anyone to let them know they have left behind an unexploded device. Later a citizen is out and about and they find the device. Some of them wisely call 911 to report it and eventually we get the call and come out to safely take care of it. Some decide to fiddle with it and are injured bad when it “goes off”.

>>>>>>>>>>>>> Hmmmmmm.....maybe there's a good reason for micros after all....

[+Ma & Pa]

A big thank you to mjb

 

His log on the cache has to be one of the best ever. Very funny.

 

And now he comes to this discussion and provides a well written explanation of the situation. His posts have all been very informative and friendly and show a dedication and knowledge of his profession.

 

.

 

,

[+Car54]

A big thank you to mjb

 

His log on the cache has to be one of the best ever. Very funny.

 

And now he comes to this discussion and provides a well written explanation of the situation. His posts have all been very informative and friendly and show a dedication and knowledge of his profession.

 

.

 

,

 

+100 - talk about an excellent example of police communications!

 

Mrs. Car54

[+Zepp914]

I wonder if the CO or the muggle have to pay a fine/fee for all the commotion this has caused.

[mjb]

I wonder if the CO or the muggle have to pay a fine/fee for all the commotion this has caused.

 

There is never a fine or charges for something like this. If the CO were to do something like write "Bomb" on the side of their cache then we might look differently at the situation.

We are a regional Bomb Squad that has been trained and certified by the FBI. We will go anywhere in the area they need us without charge to the calling agency!

[+dprovan]

Hi Folks,

I would be happy to answer any questions I can about our, (Omaha Bomb Squad), response to the Memorial Park cache.

Thanks, mjb! I've always wondered about your side of things.

 

Could you give us some numbers about how often your bomb squad is called to respond to a civilian observation and how often the device in question turns out to be dangerous?

 

I was particularly fascinated by your description of unexploded ordnance left by amateur weapons manufacturers. It sounds like that's a serious problem in your area. Can you give me some numbers about how often they're found and how often someone's injured by them?

 

Thanks again!

[mjb]

Hi Folks,

I would be happy to answer any questions I can about our, (Omaha Bomb Squad), response to the Memorial Park cache.

Thanks, mjb! I've always wondered about your side of things.

 

Could you give us some numbers about how often your bomb squad is called to respond to a civilian observation and how often the device in question turns out to be dangerous?

 

I was particularly fascinated by your description of unexploded ordnance left by amateur weapons manufacturers. It sounds like that's a serious problem in your area. Can you give me some numbers about how often they're found and how often someone's injured by them?

 

Thanks again!

Hi,

I'm sure someone has the exact figures but my gut instinct is that less than 5% of the suspicious calls we get turn out to be something real. That said, all it takes is one real item handled like it was just another false call and kaboom, another name goes on the wall.

As to homemade devices we see the most injuries around the 4th of July and New Year’s Eve. Again it not a rampant problem in our area, just something we have to keep in the back of our minds when we are responding.

Omaha is a safe town and a great place to raise a family!

[+WarNinjas]

I wonder if the CO or the muggle have to pay a fine/fee for all the commotion this has caused.

 

There is never a fine or charges for something like this. If the CO were to do something like write "Bomb" on the side of their cache then we might look differently at the situation.

We are a regional Bomb Squad that has been trained and certified by the FBI. We will go anywhere in the area they need us without charge to the calling agency!

That is very cool to hear as I have often wondered about that. We try and make ours labeled as a geocache and not to look like a bomb. However any container wrapped in camo tape or painted camo could be mistaken for a bomb I guess. I have found a few that I have had to shake my head at for why they would place something like that in a public area that does look like a pipe bomb.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

I wonder if the CO or the muggle have to pay a fine/fee for all the commotion this has caused.

 

There is never a fine or charges for something like this. If the CO were to do something like write "Bomb" on the side of their cache then we might look differently at the situation.

We are a regional Bomb Squad that has been trained and certified by the FBI. We will go anywhere in the area they need us without charge to the calling agency!

 

I think it was a couple of years ago that I was downtown and the entrance to the local walking mall was closed off with police tape and found out that it was closed off due to a bomb scare. My immediate thought was that the cache which I knew was in the area might be the reason but as it turned out, some attention seeking wacko had called the police department and said that he had left a bomb near the bank at the entrance to the mall. Apparently, a shoebox full of political propaganda was found at the location (but no bomb), and the walking mall was opened back up after about 6 hours. The lost revenue from merchants in the area was estimated to be in the thousands of dollars, and the perp was indeed charged and fined.

 

 

 

[+Ambrosia]

Growing up, we lived in a very nice, older neighborhood near the local college. But there was that *one* house (isn't there always?) in the neighborhood, and I hesitate to call it a house because it was more like a shack or an outbuilding. I don't know how so many families were able to cram in there. Of course, this house was across the street from our house.

 

Some of the younger people who lived there liked to make pipe bombs and threaten political figures in town with them. The house would get raided every so often to clean out the pipe bombs inside. I remember being a bit nervous living across from them, but at the same time, it was quite interesting!

 

I remember one day, a girlfriend got mad at her boyfriend (cheating, maybe?), and took a baseball bat to his car on the street. I just sat on the curb and watched the free entertainment as she screamed and smashed the heck out of the car and then got hauled away by the cops.

 

The spot where their house was got cleaned up and is now a nice (audiology, I think) business. I chuckle every time I drive by it.

 

Totally off topic, except for the pipe bomb stuff, sort of.

Edited October 17, 2014 by Ambrosia

[+dprovan]

I'm sure someone has the exact figures but my gut instinct is that less than 5% of the suspicious calls we get turn out to be something real.

Wow, that many? You'd think that would be the news, then, but all I see on TV are the ones that turn out to be harmless. Thanks for clearing that up!

[+OnTheGoTrio]

This is the best thing EVER.

[+CTheExplorer]

Hmm. I suspect things are a little less...tense...here in Australia.

But it does make me rethink how i might design future caches i create. That said, i only have 2 caches so far...one is a slightly adjusted yellow bath duck and ones a frog shaped lunch box!

[+OPDBRT]

Hmm. I suspect things are a little less...tense...here in Australia.

But it does make me rethink how i might design future caches i create. That said, i only have 2 caches so far...one is a slightly adjusted yellow bath duck and ones a frog shaped lunch box!

 

I was the Bomb Technician who worked this call and posted the “found” report. The world has changed a lot since 911 and it is as important as ever for people enjoying our sport to be mindful of the changing times. Terrorists and criminals don’t have to kill a lot of people to have the affect they are seeking so it is as important as ever for the Cache Operators to make their cache non-threating and well concealed in a non-critical location. For example, years ago I found a nice cache where the container was a 5” in diameter by 24” long PVC pipe with end caps placed under a bridge. It was a nice find with cool trinkets inside. Today, finding a 5”x 24” PVC pipe under a bridge would throw up all kinds of warning signs, especially if random people were spotted wondering around the area and climbing under a bridge to find it. That said, I enjoy the sport and look forward to taking it up “full time” once I retire in a couple of years hopefully with all my fingers.