PORT HUENEME : Security Tightens at Seabee Base

Tighter security has been ordered at the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Port Hueneme as the possibility of war with Iraq increases.

Spokeswoman Connie Taylor said the Sunkist entrance to the base, one of two gates that had been open 24 hours, is now closed from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. All traffic into the base between those hours must use the Pleasant Valley Road entrance.

In addition, Taylor said, security personnel at the gates have been told to check identification papers more closely. Vehicles on the base may be pulled over at random and searched, she added. The tougher scrutiny has not caused any traffic delays, Taylor said.

She said the new measures, which began Wednesday, are “just an extra precaution” as the Jan. 15 deadline for Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait approaches. She said it is the first time such measures have been adopted at the base since April, 1986, when the United States bombed Libya.