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--> --> Associated Press A Coast Guard helicopter comes close to one of two towers of the Hawthorne Bridge Friday as it does a slow inspection of several bridges along the Willamette River in downtown Portland. Police watch Portland bridges PORTLAND (AP) - Police cars kept watch beneath city bridges on Friday as Coast Guard and sheriff's department boats cruised off the downtown waterfront, responding to reported terrorist threats against West Coast bridges. Patrol boats inspected debris floating near some of the 10 Portland bridges spanning the Willamette River, which divides the city. Other boats scrutinized bridge understructures; the Department of Transportation parked trucks nearby. The Justice Department warned Thursday that West Coast bridges could be targeted by terrorists. California Gov. Gray Davis also announced that federal officials have "credible evidence" that terrorists may be targeting bridges in that state. He cited San Francisco's Golden Gate and Bay Bridges as well as bridges in Los Angeles San Diego. Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber said Friday there was no evidence of a direct threat against Oregon. But he has ordered stepped-up police patrols of the state's most heavily traveled bridges, mainly eight bridges in downtown Portland. "They're monitoring the waterways and working with a variety of law-enforcement agencies, including the Coast Guard," said Sarah Bott, spokeswoman for Portland Mayor Vera Katz. Bott declined to say how many police officers were involved in increased security near Portland's bridges. Multnomah County sheriff's spokesman Dan Oldham said the operation - spanning 96 miles of Willamette and Columbia riverways - also involved Portland's police and fire departments, Oregon State Police and the Clackamas County sheriff's department, along with the Clark County, Wash., sheriff's office and police in Vancouver, Wash. Oldham said authorities were treating "this as an operational threat. We have no information to the contrary, at all." The Coast Guard has been checking the undersides of Portland's bridges since the Sept. 11 East Coast terror attacks. About five or six boats are sent out each day to cruise the Willamette and Columbia rivers. But patrols are spending more time at the bridges than they were, said Coast Guard spokeswoman Amy Gaskill. A Coast Guard helicopter flew low over the Willamette River in downtown Portland Friday afternoon and seemed to be inspecting bridges. The Coast Guard has increased the number of patrols it sends out, and the length of time they stay on the water. The patrols also have begun to ask people camped beneath Portland's bridges to move away, Gaskill said. "Before we would give them a little bit of leeway - say, ask people to leave at the end of the day," she said. "We're asking them to move right away." Gaskill and Oldham asked the public to call if anything appeared suspicious "You are our eyes and the ears out there for us," Oldham said. "That's invaluable." The Justice Department has warned officials in eight Western states about possible attacks on bridges. In an alert sent Wednesday to law enforcement agencies in California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Montana and Idaho, the FBI said: "Reportedly, unspecified groups are targeting suspension bridges on the West Coast." There is one suspension bridge in Portland - the St. Johns Bridge, built in 1931. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing