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BOSTON MARATHON
TRAGEDY STRIKES Obama vows Boston culprits to feel ‘weight of justice’
Local runners all right after 2 explosions By JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI jduchnowski@shawmedia.com
By JULIE PACE
and STEPHANIE HICKMAN
The Associated Press
shickman@shawmedia.com Julie Suter barely had time to recover from running 26.2 miles when she found herself in a sea of panicked spectators and runners. Suter finished the Boston Marathon about five minutes before two explosions near the finish line Monday afternoon. “People were really scared,” she said. “There were a lot of women crying. I just kept thinking, ‘OK, just keep going, grab your stuff and get out of here.’ ” At least eight marathoners from DeKalb County were at the race Monday in Boston; reports from friends and runners themselves were that all were OK. David Kuhn, 60, a legally blind runner from DeKalb; his guide, Bryon Guida, 33, of Oregon; and Robert Willis, 41, of Clare, contacted the Daily Chronicle. Brittany Rees posted on the newspaper’s Facebook page that her father, Jesse Rangel, 53, of DeKalb, was unharmed, and John Sullivan, 50, of Clare, said he finished the race about an hour before the explosions. Two bombs exploded more than four hours after the start of the marathon, for which runners must post qualifying times to enter. The blasts killed at least three people and injured more than 140 in a bloody scene of shattered glass and severed limbs that raised alarms that terrorists might have struck again in the U.S. A White House official speaking on the condition of anonymity because the investigation was still unfolding said the attack was being treated as an act of terrorism.
WASHINGTON – A stonyfaced President Barack Obama declared that those responsible for the explosions at the Boston Marathon “will feel the full weight of justice,” but he urged a nervous nation not to jump to conclusions. Top lawmakers declared the deadly incident an act of terrorism, and a White House official said it was being treated that way. Obama, speaking from the White House late Monday, pointedly avoided using the words “terror” or “terrorism,” saying officials “still do not David L. Ryan – The Boston Globe know who did this or why.” People react as an explosion goes off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday in Boston. Two explosions went off at the mara- However, a White House ofthon’s finish line, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers were rerouted away from the smoking site ficial later said the incident at the famous race was being of the blasts. treated as terrorism. “We will find out who did this. We’ll find out why they did this,” Obama said in his brief statement. “Any responsible individuals, any responsible groups, will feel the full weight of justice.” Authorities say at least three people were killed and more than 140 injured during two explosions near the finish of the marathon. A senior U.S. intelligence official said two other explosive devices were found near the end of the 26.2mile course. The president said the government would increase security around the United States “as necessary,” but he did not say whether his administraPhotos provided tion thought the incident was Bryon Guida (left) and David Kuhn are seen. Both were OK after part of a larger plot. explosions in Boston. Following a briefing with intelligence officials, Maryland Lisa Royer, 47, DeKalb Locals at the Rep. C.A. Dutch RuppersbergJenna Carpenter, 42, Sycamore er, top Democrat on the House Boston Marathon Intelligence Committee, said Robert Willis, 41, Clare most urban areas in the country John Sullivan, 50, Clare David Kuhn, 60, DeKalb would be under high alert.
Jesse Rangel, 53, DeKalb All were reportedly OK.
Bryon Guida, 33, Oregon Julie Suter, 47, DeKalb
See LOCAL RUNNERS, page A2
Local runners (from left to right) Julie Suter, 47, Jenna Carpenter, 42, and Lisa Royer, 47, stand at the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Sunday, the day before the race in Boston. All three were OK after explosions in Boston.
See OBAMA, page A2
Oil cleanup continues at forest preserve By STEPHANIE HICKMAN shickman@shawmedia.com
and DAVID THOMAS dthomas@shawmedia.com DeKALB – DeKalb Fire Chief Eric Hicks said it will be a few days before an oil spill in a forest preserve pond can be completely filtered out. “We’re going to monitor it this week and keep an eye on it,” he said. DeKalb Assistant Fire Chief Jeff McMasters said the department is working with the city’s Public Works Department and the DeKalb Forest Preserve on a cleanup plan for the pond, which is located in the County Farm Woods, behind the Michaels and Target stores in DeKalb.
If you find a wild animal Ashley Flint, director of the Fox Valley Wildlife Center, advised people who find birds or animals covered in foreign substances to get them into an enclosed container and bring them to a wildlife center. • Oaken Acres Wildlife Center – 815-895-9666 • Fox Valley Wildlife Center – 630-365-3800 Hicks described the situation as being in the hands of the forest preserve, which did not return calls Monday. DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott said he was aware of the spill, but said his office had not been asked to investigate. McMasters said firefight-
Provided photo
Pattie Nyquist of DeKalb rescued this oil-covered hermit thrush Friday from a pond in DeKalb. The bird was cleaned at the Fox Valley Wildlife Center in Elburn and released Sunday. ers left oil absorbant booms in the pond to filter the oil out of the water. A light sheen of
oil was visible on one of the pond’s shores, he said. McMasters and Hicks said
there was no sign of an active oil leak or any obvious clues as to how the oil got to the pond. McMasters said that apart from an oil-covered bird found and rescued by a DeKalb woman, the department found no other animals that were affected by the oil spill. Christy Gerbitz, the director of operations at Oaken Acres Wildlife Center in Sycamore, said they had not received any animals covered in oil. Pattie Nyquist of DeKalb found a bird drenched in oil and informed authorities Friday. Nyquist took the bird to Fox Valley Wildlife Center in Elburn because it was covered in oil and could not fly. “I recognized its head,” she
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said. “But the rest of its body ... was black and it was dragging its wings.” Ashley Flint, director of the wildlife center, said the bird quickly recovered from the oil spill and was released Sunday. “This one we have marked as ‘mil’ meaning it only had some tar on its feathers,” Flint said. “We gave it a couple of [dish detergent] baths, it was doing great, flew well, so it was released [Sunday].” Oil can have an adverse effect on birds, Flint said. It can harden feathers, prevent birds from cleaning themselves, affect the bird’s body temperature and sometimes prevent them from flying.
See OIL SPILL, page A4
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