House: Reopen Statue of Liberty's Crown

Source: AP via the Baytown (TX) Sun

The House on Tuesday prodded parks officials to reopen the crown of the Statue of Liberty to the public - a step the government says is too dangerous.

Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., for the second year in a row added an amendment to a spending bill giving the National Park Service $1 million to study how to safely reopen the staircase to the statue's crown - something prohibited since the 2001 terror attacks.

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Tuesday's amendment, passed Tuesday by voice vote, does not force the park service to reopen the statue, and the agency has claimed the tightly packed, 168-step spiral metal staircase is a fire hazard and a terror risk.

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New security measures included a bomb detection device that blows air into clothing and then checks for particles of explosives residue. Bomb-sniffing dogs also have been seen at the site.




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