By Eileen Buckley
Buffalo, NY – Security was tightened Monday at sensitive operations in the Buffalo-Niagara region.
The New York Power Authority has closed the Power Vista visitors center. And heightened customs inspections at the area's border crossings resulted in delays of up to five hours for commercial traffic entering the US.
The nation's terror alert was raised to Code Orange Sunday -- the second highest level. US Senator Charles Schumer says intelligence sources have detected a great deal of "chatter" over the past few weeks.
"There have been three different types of the chatter. The most serious one has no specific time and date. And in the past, the terrorists have had more chatter on wires at this time of year," Schumer said. "Whether they are trying to scare us because of the holiday season or because they finished their feast of Ramadan, which doesn't allow them to do these kinds of activities, we don't know."
Schumer says a number of locations have been mentioned in the chatter, but not Western New York. Schumer says he remains optimistic that, as in the past, "nothing" will occur.