NavyMed Base Heightens Security Level Following bin Laden's Death

The base in Bethesda is on a heightened level of security following the announcement Sunday evening that

President Barack Obama announced in a speech late Sunday evening that bin Laden was dead.

“The operation obviously struck an enormous blow to al-Qaida and its affiliates,” said Sandy Dean, a spokeswoman for NavyMed. “Naval Support Activity Bethesda is now at a heightened level of security and is taking additional measures where appropriate.”

Dean couldn’t speak to what the measures were, but said they wouldn’t affect traffic in or around the medical center.

When it comes to the – a federal campus across Rockville Pike from the Naval hospital – the campus follows the lead of the Department of Homeland Security in choosing to elevate or lower security alerts, according to spokesman Brad Moss.

Monday, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said news of bin Laden’s death would not prompt a heightened terror alert, according to a report in the New York Post.

Officials are on a heightened state of vigilance, the paper reported that Napolitano said in a statement, but will not issue a National Terrorism Advisory System alert. "I have been clear since announcing NTAS in January that we will only issue alerts when we have specific or credible information to convey to the American public," the statement said.

and riders can expect to see an increase in officers in the system today, Metro officials reported. The State Department had also issued an alert for Americans traveling abroad.