2:50 p.m. EDT (18:50 UTC) along Boylston Street, west of Copley Square. The blasts killed 3 people and injured at least 183 others.
No suspects have been named, and there have been no arrests or claims of responsibility for the attack. President Barack Obama announced that the Federal Bureau of Investigation was investigating the bombings as an act of terrorism.
Bombings
When the bombs detonated, the marathon winners had already crossed the finish line about two hours earlier; other runners were still coming across. Runners continued to cross up until 2:57 p.m. The blasts blew out windows on adjacent buildings, but did no other structural damage, an indication of the anti-personnel nature of the devices.
During a news conference on April 16, Governor Deval Patrick said there were "only two explosive devices", the two that exploded. Initial reports conflicted over whether additional bombs were found, with numerous suspicious packages or bags initially discovered. The Boston Police Bomb Squad initially said that they were going to perform a controlled explosion of one of the packages found, on the 600 block of Boylston Street, but later said no other devices than the two exploding bombs have been found.
Victims
Many victims suffered lower leg injuries and shrapnel wounds, which indicated the devices were low to the ground. Some suffered ruptured eardrums.
At least 13 of the injured suffered severed limbs. Two brothers, aged 33 and 31, each lost a leg. Celeste Corcoran, a hairdresser from Lowell, had both legs amputated below the knee; her daughter Sydney, 18, sustained injuries to arteries in both legs. CNN interviewed Dr. Allan Panter who saw or tended to a male missing both legs at the blast scene. This was likely Jeff Bauman, Jr, a 27-year-old grocery worker, who had both legs amputated below the knee at a hospital due to vascular and bone damage. A photo of Bauman in a wheelchair, being assisted by volunteers and an emergency worker, became iconic of the bombing.
A doctor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center had seen an X-ray of a patient's leg containing "what appears to be small, uniform, round objects throughout it—similar in the appearance to BBs". Doctors described removing "ball-bearing type" metallic beads a little larger than BBs, and more than a dozen small carpenter-type nails about 1 to 2.5 centimeters (0.4 to 1.0 in) long.
Ten local hospitals treated a total of more than 124 people. At least 15 of the injured were in critical condition on April 16, including 2 children. Among the hospitals treating victims were Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, which treated 33 people; Massachusetts General Hospital (31) Brigham and Women's Hospital (31); Boston Medical Center (23); Tufts Medical Center (18), St. Elizabeth's Medical Center (18) Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital (13); Boston Children's Hospital (10); Carney Hospital (5); and Newton-Wellesley Hospital (1).
Responses
The marathon was halted abruptly. Police, following emergency plans, diverted the remaining runners away from the finish line to Boston Common or Kenmore Square. The nearby Lenox Hotel was also evacuated. Police closed down a 15-block area around the blast site; this was reduced to a 12-block crime scene on April 16. Massachusetts National Guard units already on scene joined local authorities in rendering aid. Bomb squads searched the area. Many bystanders had dropped backpacks and other bags as they fled, requiring each to be treated as a potential bomb. The police commissioner, Ed Davis, strongly recommended that people stay off the streets.
In New York City, counter-terrorism vehicles were deployed to landmark sites in Manhattan, as the New York Police Department increased security at hotels, Times Square, and other places. Security was also increased in Washington, D.C., and the White House was partially evacuated, while it was being cordoned off by the United States Secret Service.
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency suggested people trying to contact those in the vicinity use text messaging, instead of voice calls, because of crowded cellphone lines. Cellphone service in Boston was congested but remained in operation, despite some local media reports stating that cell service was shut down.
The American Red Cross helped concerned friends and family receive information about runners and casualties. The Boston Police Department also set up a helpline for people concerned about relatives or acquaintances to contact and a line for people to provide information. Google Person Finder activated their disaster service under Boston Marathon Explosions to log known information about missing persons as a publicly viewable file.
Due to the closure of several hotels near the blast zone, many out-of-town visitors were left with nowhere to stay, and many Boston residents opened their homes to them.
Investigation
Boston police commissioner Edward Davis said at a 6 p.m. press conference on April 15, "There is no suspect in custody." Though not treated as suspects, several people who were near the scene of the blast and the surrounding area were taken into custody and questioned about the bombings, including a Saudi man tackled by a civilian who thought he was suspicious and held him for police. Early in the morning on April 16, law enforcement officials searched a residence in the nearby Boston suburb of Revere, the home of the Saudi man, who had been injured by shrapnel and was considered to be a "person of interest". Some investigators left the residence carrying brown paper bags, plastic trash bags, and a duffel bag. The Washington Post reported that the individual was being treated as a witness, not a suspect, by law enforcement. The New York Times also reported that a law enforcement official said that investigators had determined the man had no involvement in the attack.
United States government officials stated that there had been no intelligence reports that indicated such a bombing would take place. Representative Peter King, member of the House Intelligence Committee said: "I received two top secret briefings last week on the current threat levels in the United States, and there was no evidence of this at all."
A person who was briefed on the investigation said at least one of the devices was made from a pressure cooker packed with shards of metal, nails, and ball bearings to inflict maximum casualties and was placed in a backpack.Investigators have found remains of an electronic circuit board that was possibly used in the timer of the bomb. U.S. Representative Mike McCaul, Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said that "most likely gun powder" was used in the explosive devices.
On April 16, 2013, President Barack Obama said that the bombings were being investigated as an act of terror, but authorities still didn't know who was responsible. Obama called the bombing "a heinous and cowardly act used to target innocent civilians."
Reactions
Reaction to the bombings, locally and from around the world, came in from law enforcement, local and national politicians, and various heads of state.Local
As a safety precaution, the National Hockey League postponed a Boston Bruins hockey home game against the Ottawa Senators at TD Garden scheduled for April 15. The National Basketball Association's Boston Celtics–Indiana Pacers game scheduled for April 16 was canceled since both teams' playoff seedings were already set. The Boston Symphony Orchestra canceled its April 15 performance. The MBTA public transit system, which was partly shut down, was under heavy national guard and police presence.National
Speaker John Boehner ordered that flags outside the U.S. Capitol be lowered to half-staff. The flag on the White House was lowered to half staff the next day as well. President Obama also issued a proclamation ordering flags to half-staff through April 20 on all federal buildings as "a mark of respect for the victims of the senseless acts of violence perpetrated on April 15, 2013, in Boston, Massachusetts."
A minute of silence was observed at the openings of the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, and NYMEX the next day.
International
Organizers of the forthcoming London Marathon, planned for April 21, reviewed security arrangements for their event, despite there not being any specific threats against the event.Security measures were increased worldwide in the wake of the explosions in Boston.The Canadian Consulate in Boston located approximately 820 feet (250 m) from the Boston Marathon finish line, was put into lockdown and all calls were redirected to Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) in Ottawa. All staff were accounted for.
The bombings were denounced and condolences were offered by many international leaders.Russia, which is about to hold several international sports events in the near future, including the 2014 Winter Olympics, said that special attention will be paid to security at those events.
Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan denied that his organization was involved in the bombings. In a statement issued on April 16, he stated that the group was "not involved in this attack" but affirmed its goal of "attack[ing] the US and its allies".
SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA
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