LNG tanker from Yemen pulls into Boston Harbor

BOSTON -- An LNG tanker traveling from Yemen to Boston arrived Tuesday morning.

The ship, which left Yemen earlier this month carrying liquefied natural gas, was set to dock in Everett.

The Coast Guard claimed that necessary security measures are in place, but Mayor Menino says more steps should have been taken as the tanker sailed into Boston Harbor.

"How can we have a discussion about having it off-loaded outside the harbor. What's the problem? They do it at other places. Why is Boston different than other places?" said Mayor Menino.

A Boston Globe analysis showed that a boat bomb similar in size to the one that slammed into the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 could cause a blast zone two miles wide, killing thousands nearby and igniting close building.

Massachusetts Rep. Stephen Lynch was on board the tanker during its delivery.

“My two girls and my wife – we live in that blast zone, so obviously the threat here is very real,” Lynch said.

The cost of public safety for each delivery is reportedly $25,000, paid for by Distrigas

The 30 deliveries per year help Distrigasprovide 20 percent of New England’s natural gas on a given day.

Some nearby residents were uneasy about the tanker's arrival.

"We would have thought that maybe with everything, with all the terrorist stuff, they would have said, 'No we don't need that one in particular,'" said Chrystal Branco, a concerned resident.

The ship's arrival came despite concerns about Yemen supporting terrorists.

The suspect in the failed Christmas Day plot to blow up a Detroit-bound flight reportedly received training in Yemen.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, of Nigeria, is the suspect in the attempted attack. Officials said he had a bomb inside his clothing.

Lynch said he plans on traveling to Yemen to get a better look at the loading facility.

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