Entrances to the base have been blocked off by mazes of concrete barriers.
By: T.J. Furman
FORT DIX The base here is on a heightened state of alert after terrorist attacks were carried out against the World Trade Center and the Pentagon this morning.
Entrances to the base have been blocked off by mazes of concrete barriers, through which Department of Defense police are only allowing military and government personnel. All entrances to neighboring McGuire Air Force Base, except the main entrance, have been entirely blocked by concrete barriers, according to Fort Dix public affairs spokesman Kryn Westhoven.
Mr. Westhoven said the base is currently at threat condition bravo, one level above normal status, threat condition alpha. The most severe threat condition is delta, Mr. Westhoven said. He said base officials expected the condition to remain in effect for "the foreseeable future."
Officials would not be surprised if the threat condition was upgraded at some point later today, Mr. Westhoven said.
"Security could get even tighter as the situation develops," he added. "I’m sure they’re still sorting everything out."
In addition to the concrete barriers, threat condition bravo requires all vehicles on the base to be parked at least 100 feet from all buildings and a 100-percent identification check before personnel can be admitted to the base. Mr. Westhoven said military or civilian government employee ID cards, as well as a vehicle registration and insurance card, are required to gain admittance to the base.
Military personnel are now conducting entire searches of all vehicles admitted onto Fort Dix, a measure the base was not taking earlier today, Mr. Westhoven said.
Civilian employees are remaining at the base at this time and the only apparent outward difference at the base is the traffic jam caused by the security alert. Motorists regularly use the base’s roads to go from New Hanover and Wrightstown to Pemberton and Browns Mills. Mr. Westhoven was directing motorists to alternate routes on Texas Avenue near the New Hanover Township School while speaking with several reporters.
Several family members of military personnel on the base scheduled to fly to Bosnia have called the public affairs office at Fort Dix in the past few hours, Mr. Westhoven said.

