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No less than 22 individuals were harmed after a bomb exploded on a pressed London Underground prepare on Friday, setting off a “mass of flame” that consumed workers in Britain’s fifth dread assault in a half year.
Witnesses saw travelers with facial consumes and hair falling off at the Parsons Green station in west London after the blast
“At 8.20 toward the beginning of today at Parsons Green station there was a blast . We now evaluate this was an explosion of an ad libbed dangerous gadget,” police counter-dread boss Mark Rowley said.
Rowley said 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.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said a “manhunt” was underway.
One local resident, Charlie Craven, who was on his way to the station, said he heard a “massive bang”.
The bucket, which was inside a frozen food bag from the budget supermarket chain Lidl, looked like the type used by builders and there appeared to be cables coming out of it.
Police sources cited by British media said the device had a timer but had failed to detonate fully.
US President Donald Trump said that “loser terrorists” were behind the attack, adding that they were already “in the sights” of British police.
London’s Metropolitan Police dismissed the tweet as “unhelpful speculation”, and Trump was also rebuked by Prime Minister Theresa May.
“I never think it’s helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation,” she said, speaking after an emergency cabinet meeting.
May also said the device was “clearly intended to cause significant harm,” condemning it as a “cowardly attack”.
The National Health Service said 18 people were taken by ambulance to 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 additional security measures over the weekend.
Armed police and sniffer dogs could be seen on the train and around the station, which is in a leafy area of west London popular with well-off commuters, and filled with chic cafes.
The area around the station was later evacuated as bomb disposal experts secured what was left.
Local residents and businesses rallied together with businesses offering tea and the use of their toilets to people unable to get home.
The local council of Hammersmith and Fulham opened a rest centre in the area for those affected.
The bombing is the fifth terror attack in Britain since March, when a man mowed down pedestrians and stabbed a police officer outside the British parliament.
Passengers described chaotic scenes at the station in the normally quiet part of west London.
