At least 22 people were injured yesterday after a bomb detonated on a packed London Underground train during the morning rush hour in what police are treating as a “terrorist incident.”
Witnesses reported seeing a “wall of fire” and passengers with facial burns and hair coming off at Parsons Green station in west London after the explosion.
“At 8:20 this morning at Parsons Green station there was an explosion on a Tube train. We now assess that this was a detonation of an improvised explosive device,” police counter-terror chief Mark Rowley said.
Photo: Reuters
Most of the injuries were due to “flash burns,” while others were wounded by the stampede as passengers ran out of the station in panic, he said.
One local resident, Charlie Craven, who was on his way to the station, said he heard a “massive bang.”
“I saw an orange sort of fireball encompassing the whole Tube coming towards you,” he said.
The British National Health Service said that 18 people were taken by ambulance to a hospital, while four others made their own way to hospitals.
The London Ambulance Service said none of the victims “are thought to be in a serious or life-threatening condition.”
The MI5 intelligence service is assisting investigators and police said Londoners should expect extra security measures over the weekend.
“There is a manhunt under way as we speak,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan told LBC radio, urging Londoners to remain “calm and vigilant.”
British Prime Minister Theresa May said her thoughts were with the injured.
She later chaired an emergency Cabinet meeting.
The station was closed, as well as an entire section of the District Line, and police urged people to stay away from the area.
Otso Iho, a senior analyst at Jane’s Terrorism and Insurgency Centre, said the latest attack showed a “continued high intent, but low capability” of the terrorism threat in Britain.
Imperial College professor of chemical engineering Hans Michels said the flash flame “suggests that the explosion was only partly successful.”
“Much of the bucket still seems to be intact and there appear to be no victims with lethal impact wounds,” he said.
US President Donald Trump said the attack was carried out by a “loser terrorist.”
“These are sick and demented people who were in the sights of Scotland Yard. Must be proactive!” he said on Twitter.
“Loser terrorists must be dealt with in a much tougher manner. The internet is their main recruitment tool which we must cut off & use better,” he added.
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