Concerned Calls from Far and Wide Poured in for Watertown Councilor and His Family

District D Councilor Ken Woodland got a grim wake up call early Friday when a friend from the West Coast awoke him to say his hometown was under attack by the Boston Marathon bombers.

Woodland works for Mimecast in Waltham, which also has a West Coast office.

"They called me right when everything began going down around 2 a.m.," Woodland said. "They said, 'Ken turn on the TV.' I watched it develop."

They were just the first of many people to contact Woodland. He said people associate him with Watertown because he frequently "rocked a Watertown sweatshirt" in college.

"Everyone was reaching out to make sure everyone is safe and OK, reminding everyone to stay indoors," Woodland said. "And hoping for the best for everyone and hope the bomber gets caught."

While Woodland got much love from his friends, his father John got the most unexpected call.

"My grandfather fought for Canada with the English in World War II, and my father got a call from one of the guys from his old unit," Woodland said. "He called from Calgary, Canada. He heard what was going on, and even though my grandfather died 10 years ago he remembered my grandfather lived in Watertown and wanted to make sure his family and friends were OK."

Like other Watertown residents Woodland remained cooped up in his house as polce have told residents to shelter in to allow police to conduct their search for the second boming suspect. He asked residents to remain patient so police and firefighters can do their job.

"My highest recommendation would be to stay inside and to keep up with the story," Woodland said. "We need to trust the folks in town to do what they were trained to do, like have done since whole thing started and will continue to do."