Cartoon Network Promotion Terrorizes Boston

BOSTON – The Coast Guard re-opened the closed portion of the Charles River, from the Museum of Science to the Boston Harbor locks, 5 p.m. today.

The river was closed after suspicious packages were reported on the Longfellow and Boston University Bridges about 1 p.m. today.

Coast Guard Cutter Flyingfish, homeported in Boston, patrolled Boston Harbor near the locks to ensure no waterway traffic could enter the Charles River.

Additionally, Coast Guard Sector Boston increased random patrols of ferry terminals and put law enforcement teams aboard some commuter ferries as a precautionary measure.

Five electronic devices, were planted at bridges, Tufts New England Medical Center and other parts of Boston as part of a marketing campaign for a late-night cartoon.

Highways, bridges and a section of the Charles River were shut down and bomb squads were sent in before authorities declared the devices were harmless.

Turner Broadcasting, the parent company of Cartoon Network, said the devices, were part of a promotion for the TV show “Aqua Teen Hunger Force.”

“We regret that they were mistakenly thought to pose any danger,” the company said.

The New England Medical Center was evacuated for a short time. A spokeswoman for the hospital says a package found in a building at the medical center was determined not to be an explosive device.


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