3 People Dead, Scores Injured In Boston Marathon Bombing
3 people have died and more than 150 people were injured when two strong bombs were detonated near the beloved Boston Marathon’s finish line on Apr. 15. What should have been a cheerful, sweaty time turned into time of bloody carnage, screams and even death.
According to officials, of the 23,000 runners in this year’s race, three-quarters had already finished when the bomb, placed inside a garbage can on Boylston Street, exploded into a crowd of spectators at approximately 2:50 p.m., a little over four hours after the race begun. Just a few seconds after the first explosion, a second one occurred a few hundred feet away.
Chaos and mayhem took the place of cheers as panicked spectators and runners took off in every direction and responders hurried in to help the injured. According to witnesses, some people lost their lower limbs in the blasts.
The bombings’ aftereffects reached outside the city, with Washington, D.C. officials increasing security on public transportation and shutting streets located near the White House down. The Secret Service blocked off Pennsylvania Avenue, as a precaution.
The New York Police Department said hotels and other prominent city locations were under heightened security until the more information is learned about the attack.
One Boston Marathon runner and East Boston resident Jarrett Sylvester, 26, said when the first bomb went off, he believed it was a celebratory thing and he just kept running. When the second bomb went off, he saw debris going through the air. He said when he realized it was a bomb, he ran in the opposite direction.
Officials have said the FBI is taking over the investigation. Boston’s Special Agent Richard DesLauriers is in charge of the investigation who called it a criminal investigation that has the possibility of being a terrorist investigation. No information was given on what has been learned so far or what they’re looking into except that extensive federal resources are being brought in.
As of Monday evening, it was not clear who could be responsible for the two blasts that caused the three deaths including an 8-year-old boy that also left his mother and sister injured. Authorities have said a Saudi citizen is in the hospital and is heavily guarded but nobody is in custody. There are no suspects; just persons of interest.
Law enforcement officers, late Monday, were searching a Revere apartment. Revere is a suburb of Boston. A search warrant in relation to the bombing investigation was executed but no additional details were released.
During the night, authorities were working on the assumption that two explosive devices were involved. However, several bags were blown up – many to have been left by the runners – that were left on the street, as a precaution.
Boston’s explosive devices are similar to the one used in the 1995 Centennial Olympic Park attack in Atlanta that killed two and injured more than 100 people. The Boston bombing is included in the week of other prominent, well-known disasters and bombings:
Apr. 19, 1993 – Branch Davidians federal raid and fire, 80 members killed after 51-day standoff in Waco, Tx.
April 19, 1995 – Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building bombing in Oklahoma City
President Barack Obama spoke about the attack, condemning it and saying the people or group responsible for it would be brought to justice. Obama said the government will find out who did it and why.
Police officials shut down a 15-block radius near and around the blast site with transportation stops being closed; that’s currently down to a 12-block radius. Boston Logan International Airport briefly halted landings and the Monday night concert by the Boston Symphony Orchestra was cancelled. The Tuesday Boston Celtics game has been cancelled.
Ed Davis, Boston’s police commissioner, said people should stay in their homes or hotel rooms and not to be in large crowds.
The day started perfectly for the Boston Marathon, which is considered one of the most recognizable events. Temperatures were around 50 degrees and the skies were clear and blue. There were over 23,000 runners who started the race with more than 500,000 spectators in attendance. The blast occurred long after the top runners had completed their race – Lelisa Desisa Benti of Ethiopia won the men’s race in 2:10:22; Kenya resident Rita Jeptoo won the ladies’ race in 2:26:25.
26-year-old Medford resident Stephanie Grammel said she was at the race to watch her sister and suddenly felt a large boom. She said she was probably about 10 to 15 feet away from the blast so she saw the bloody injuries among the crowd. She said she saw one man who had no legs.
Many runners who had just finished the race could not believe what they were seeing. 19-year-old Nico Enriquez said he was looking at the ground on Boylston Street when he looked up and saw folks running toward his direction. Enriquez said they looked freaked out.
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