Air-scare pupil drinks homework

[Evening Star]

From BBC News website (http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/education/newsid_1918000/1918968.stm):

A pupil in the United States is claiming airport security guards made him drink a murky sample of river water gathered for his biology homework.

Worried about what might be contained in his drinking container, airport officials in Aspen, Colorado are alleged to have asked the teenage boy to show that it was really water by drinking it.

Since the terrorist attacks of 11 September, passengers are required to show that any on-board liquids are not dangerous.

The pupil, Elliot Gosko, who had gathered the sample for a biology project at his Pennsylvania high school, says he agreed to drink the water.

He had been visiting his grandparents and had hoped to gain extra credits for bringing back the sample.

But he has since missed two days of school because of nausea and is now believed to be undergoing tests for stomach illnesses.

This is in response to concerns that he could be suffering from giardia, an infection contracted through untreated water.

But representatives of the Federal Aviation Administration said that security officials were not aware that this was untreated river water.

"If we had been told it was creek water there is no way we would have asked him to take a swig of it, unless we had reason to believe it was something else," said FAA spokesperson, Mike Fergus.

And there were also statements from airport security saying that while there was a requirement to check liquids being taken on board, there was no obligation for passengers to drink anything.

[Standard Noise]

Well, it's got to be better than English beer, hasn't it?!

[Unwell_Raptor]

When I read that the boy had been visiting his grandparents I started to get a really bad feeling...........:eek:

['%MAC']

Being from the county north of KASE, and Pitkin County, let me emphasis that most of the rivers, ponds and lakes contain the microbe Giardia lamblia which is a most unpleasant visitor. Cramps and instantaneous diarrhea ensue for weeks with dehydration a very real possibility. In the United States it has been common practice to prove the innocuous nature of a liquid by consumption; many times I’ve had to demonstrate the benign volatility of my coffee by drinking a sip in front of security personal. It doesn’t surprise me that now the wonderful FAA is backtracking, saying they wouldn’t have required it if....

[somewhatconcerned]

The 9/11 attacks didn't start this practice off I was asked to drink out of my bottle of mineral water at KDTW well over a year ago at a security check point.
Sounds like another attempt by a journo to mock efforts made by airports to increase their security since that horrible day.
Expect more stories to follow:rolleyes:

[Nihontraveller]

Message to all doctors:-

Don`t carry urine samples on US carriers!

;)

[Konkordski]

Sounds like another attempt by a journo to mock efforts made by airports to increase their security since that horrible day.

Sounds like another attempt to mock journos for trying to do a job, more like. If the story is true (I can't prove anything is factually inaccurate) and kids are being made to drink riverwater under the guise of 'prevention of terrorism' while in other areas guns are still making it on board aircraft then IMHO we've got bigger things to be worrying about.

What needs mocking is the crude attempt to give the journo a below-the-belt punch here when there's a more serious issue at hand. Please tell me that the aviation industry has learned something by 11 Sept and that it hasn't pinned its hopes for security on people who seem to have demonstrated an alarming lack of intuition and/or commonsense.

Don't want a jar of water on the plane? Confiscate it, dummy. You've got the power.

In the aftermath of Lockerbie they were substituting marzipan for plastic explosive during security tests. Wonder how these guys would have handled that one? Take a bite please, sir... :rolleyes: