On Boston's near-empty streets, sirens and empty storefronts

In downtown Boston, police stood guard on almost every street corner along Massachusetts Avenue, eyeing closed storefronts and almost empty sidewalks. Residents were urged to stay inside most of the day, while a lockdown was enforced as police hunted forthe marathon bombings suspect.

"Its almost like living in a police state," graduate student Marissa Gilburd said Friday, sitting on the front step of her apartment with her husband, Joe, and sister-in-law Rachael.

"I would rather they do this, though," she said of the police shutdown.

"These guys really knew how to make bombs."

The manhunt for bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaevended Friday night when he wasfoundby policein Watertown, a Boston suburb. His brother died early Friday after a gunfight with police.

While the manhunt for Dzhokhar centred on Watertown, which is on the Cambridge side of the Charles River and several kilometres away, the state ordered Boston residents to stay inside for hours. Universities and businesses closed, and taxis were briefly ordered off the roads. By mid-afternoon, home games for the Bruins and Red Sox had been postponed.

• Bruins, Red Sox postpone games due to Boston lockdown
• Locked-down Boston connects online

It's stillwasn't a quiet city.

Emergency vehiclesbecame a permanent part ofBoston's sound, to the point whereit wasodd when there wasn't the sound of a helicopter overhead or a convoy ofpolice cars racing to a new site of concern. Since the marathon, anything remotely suspicious merited an emergency response.

'They're afraid'

On Newbury Street, two bomb squad trucksblack pick-up truckswith huge boxes of equipment on the backroared past construction manager Marcos Pires.

• Boston manhunt of the photos

Pires had been locked out of his Copley Square office, but still came to work Friday, unlike some of his workers.

"Many of my guys didnt want to work," Pires said. "Theyre afraid."

Not everyone stayed inside.

"Im so sick of waiting around," one woman stopped at a red light during a morning run said. Several people walked their dogs.

• See a map of the Boston manhunt

The Massachusetts Avenueand Newbury Streetarea is one of Bostons main shopping destinations and when Boston's universities are open its cafes and stores full of people.

On Friday, nobody waswindow shopping.Thoseoutsidewere glued to their phones, checking for news about the manhunt.

'What's the point?'

Memphis resident John Langan, visiting Boston while his wife is at a surgery conference, decided to come out and photograph one of Boylston Streets memorials for the marathon victims. He hadbeen watching it grow all week, and it left him wondering why bombers went after the marathon.

"I dont know why someone would do thisI mean, whats the point?" Langan said, shaking his head.

Langan said he wasn'tworried about being out in the Boston streets, despite the gruff warnings from local police. One barked at him: "If I wasnt here Id be home, locked in my house."

Langan wasnt alone in ignoring the police orders. Chris Kourtidis runs Steve's Greek Cuisine, the only restaurant open near Massachusetts Ave. and barely a kilometre from the scene of the marathon blasts.

"We're here, people are coming, so we're open," Kourtidis said, adding he'll stay open until police tell him directly to shut down.

CBC News speaks to Canadians in Boston

CBC News offices across the country have also spoken to Canadians stranded in Boston. Here's a round-up:

• Calgary: Deserted Boston streets 'eerie,' says Calgarian.
• Edmonton: St. Albert students in Boston amidst lockdown.
• Saskatchewan: Sask. man in Boston describes lockdown, manhunt.
• Manitoba: Ex-Winnipegger describes 'post-apocalypic' Boston.
• Windsor: Canadians describe lockdown in Massachusetts manhunt.
• Montreal: Quebec students sit tight near Boston as manhunt continues.
• New Brunswick: 40 New Brunswick tourists stuck in Boston during manhunt.