After latest FBI warning, nation's police wonder how much more alert they can be

The FBI&#39;s warning of a possible terrorist attack as early as Tuesday was met largely with calm attentiveness by law enforcement agencies. <br> <br> The nation&#39;s police officers, already on high alert since the Sept. 11 attacks and subsequent federal warnings, wondered how much more cautious they could be. <br> <br> &#34;Ever since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, our officers have been on high alert and we continue to remain so,&#34; said Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Jason Lee. <br> <br> &#34;No specific location or time was given for this latest alert, so there&#39;s not much more we can do. I mean how much higher can we go? We&#39;re already on the highest alert.&#34; <br> <br> The FBI scrambled to put out the warning on Monday, saying &#34;recent information indicates a planned attack may occur in the United States or against U.S. interests on or around Feb. 12, 2002. One or more operatives may be involved in the attack.&#34; <br> <br> About 18,000 law agencies were notified, but officials were not specific about possible targets. The alert identified one possible attacker as Fawaz Yahya al-Rabeei, a light-skinned 22-year-old from Yemen. <br> <br> New York City police already were on &#34;heightened awareness&#34; even before the warning, with officers stationed at landmarks, tunnels, bridges and city, state and federal office buildings. <br> <br> New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday he couldn&#39;t discuss details, but urged people to &#34;go about your business.&#34; <br> <br> &#34;I don&#39;t think you should panic,&#34; Bloomberg said. <br> <br> A spokesman for Michigan State Police said his agency was aware of the FBI alert but had no reason to believe the state was particularly likely as a site for an attack. <br> <br> &#34;It was more or less a &#39;be on the lookout&#39; alert,&#34; said Lt. Jerry Conners in East Lansing. <br> <br> Before Monday, FBI and Homeland Security officials had issued three general alerts urging all Americans to be cautious and on the lookout for possible terrorist activities. <br> <br> The last was issued Dec. 3 and was supposed to last through the holidays. It has since been extended through the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and is supposed to expire around March 11. <br> <br> In addition, the FBI has issued numerous narrower alerts, such as to nuclear power plant operators. And some state leaders have added to the urgency, like California Gov. Gray Davis&#39; warnings for state bridges. <br> <br> In Oregon, law enforcement agencies and officials at Portland International Airport said they had no plans to make any security changes because of the most recent alert. <br> <br> Officers in Concord, N.H., likely would be doing extra patrols of potential targets -- state buildings, water treatment facilities, malls and airports, said Police Lt. Walter Carroll. <br> <br> But Carroll said that unless authorities get more detailed information about the threat, &#34;You probably wouldn&#39;t notice anything different,&#34; he said. <br> <br> In Nebraska, Omaha Officer Meg Fricke said the FBI alert was forwarded throughout the department, but nothing in particular was planned. <br> <br> &#34;Are we locking down public buildings? No. It&#39;s just kind of business as usual,&#34; she said. <br> <br>

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