Excitement builds, security tight ahead of 121st Boston Marathon

BOSTON — Everything is set: Barricades are in place and tents are set up along Boylston Street as people start arriving and the excitement builds as thousands prepare to run the 121st Boston Marathon.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said he expects about 30,000 runners to participate in the Marathon and about a half-million people will cheer them all on from Hopkinton to Copley Square and everywhere in between the 26.2-mile route.

To keep everyone safe there will be thousands of police officers along the route and a surveillance booth from the ground and sky.

One thing police said they were concerned about is the possibility of vehicles being used as weapons after several attacks overseas.

So, Boston has a fleet of plows and trucks as barricades along some of the more crowded spots.

“I don’t want to get people alarmed,” Boston police Commissioner William Evans said. “There’s no intelligence, but we live in a new world where there are these things that we have to take into consideration.”

Boston PD are also counting on the help of a tethered drone for capturing surveillance footage from above. The drone will first take flight right above the starting line at Hopkinton, marking the first time this technology is being used for the race.

Spectators watching the Marathon are reminded that several items are banned including:

• Weapons & fireworks
• No backpacks, handbags or suitcases
• No large blankets or sleeping bags
• No coolers, glass or containers larger than one liter
• No costumes or anything covering the face

Cox Media Group