Family of Channel 9 social media producer under lockdown in Boston

NEWTON, Mass. — Channel 9's social media producer is from Newton, Mass., one of the first Boston communities put under lockdown overnight.

Her parents’ home is just a few miles away from Watertown, where officers focused much of their search for one of the suspected Boston bombers, 19 year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Shortly after Amanda woke up Friday morning, she got a text from her mom saying their Boston neighborhood was under lockdown.

"I didn't even finish reading the text and I just called her, panicking,” Amanda said.

Channel 9 anchor Tenikka Smith spoke with Amanda and also talked to her parents on Skype. They didn't know about the dramatic chain of events that began to unfold Thursday night until they got a call from police Friday morning.

"It was a broadcast from the Newton Police Department saying we are under lockdown mode and do not leave our house, do not open the door and do not walk outside with the dog.  Stay inside,” Larry Pensack said.

The Pensacks said on a Friday morning, their suburban neighborhood is typically busy with cars, delivery drivers and people out exercising. But the streets were empty Friday as neighbors took heed to the warnings.

"It's beyond comprehension, unbelievable,” Meredith Pensack said.

The experience has also been difficult for Amanda, who has been monitoring the developments from Boston and updating Channel 9's social media feeds since Monday's marathon bombings.

"To have something like this happen where I'm from and where my family and my loved ones live is just heartbreaking,” she said.

It is an unthinkable tragedy forever noted in history, but the Pensacks believe their city will be remembered for so much more.

"I just think that this will only help grow our community and make us more tight-knit,” Amanda said.

Her father, Larry, said, "We have a spirit here that will triumph over this tragedy, and I feel proud of the city coming together, working together to figure this out so quickly."

WSOC