Explosion at the Boston Marathon

[MillerTime GFG]

Just talked to my parents. Safe and sound, but rattled to say the least.

My Dad finished the marathon at 4:08, about a minute and a half before the explosion and was about 100 feet past the finish line when the explosion went off. My mum was about 7 minutes from the finish line and she said she and the other entrants couldn't hear the explosions and the race "just stopped for no apparent reason" and there was "a wall of runners all stopped in confusion".

When my Mum found out that there had been an explosion, she went looking for my Dad and was unable to find him at their pre-determined meeting spot. She went back to their hotel and waited 45 minutes and he still hadn't shown. So, she decided to leave a note for him in case he did show up and she was going to go out and try to locate him.

Right as she was leaving the hotel room, he walked in and all was good. They are very rattled and just feel bad for the innocent people injured. Says it is military in full force around there with "huge guns" everywhere and it is "very American".

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by PeteLFan

Who is Kirsten Fleming?

Executive Director, Calgary Marathon Society.

She's in Boston doing a Calgary booth at the Boston Marathon Race Expo, raising brand awareness for her race.

Lots of races around North America right now using their Facebook pages to express condolences and best wishes for events in Boston.

Cowperson

[peter12]

Originally Posted by Young-Sneezy

this seriously gives me goosebumps and is really sad to watch...

people make me sick sometimes.

But people also make me proud. Look at the hundreds who ran to help, and comfort the wounded.

[sekhon]

Originally Posted by puckluck2

Who cares where this nut job was from. I'm not going to apologize if another Muslim did this the same way I'm not going to apologize for what another Flames fan does.

Apologizing on behalf of someone else's actions is not constructive to anything.

And I don't think Muslims have been quiet. The last Friday prayer I was at the Imam spent 30 minutes bashing the "Muslim" terrorists and calling them fake Muslims and that they were shameful and didn't represent what being a Muslim is about.

Of course no news cameras were around to cover that or nobody mentions we are standing up against these fools. That doesn't sell papers.

Well said

[afc wimbledon]

I will make a couple of complete gueses here but the fact they were planted bombs and from the look of the explosian not very sophisticated, there is a huge amount of flame and smoke, suggests a not particularly skilled bomb maker without access to decent explosives. This looks like something cooked up from an internet recipie.

As such expect it wont be Al Queda but some home grown nutter, they may claim to be the Black Panther Islamic Revoltionary Front or the like but the whole thing seems way to random and amatuar, I see Al Queda as more likely to use suicide bombers strapped up with C4 (as the suicide aspect really rattles us in the west) and the blast would aim to kill hundreds.

It also strikes me that Boston is fairly close to Sandy Hook so it may turn out to be some wack job punishing those godless north easterners for gun control.

[Cowperson]

WSBK Boston has a four hour time slot open for a replay of the Boston Marathon starting at 6 pm Calgary time. Will be interesting to see what he do. Lost in the tragedy is there was a high end race with tens of thousands of dollars awarded that finished a few hours before the explosions.

Cowperson

[CMPunk]

Saw this on twitter and it made me smile

NSFW language

NSFW!

[chemgear]

Some photos. WARNING - one is VERY gruesome.

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2...ombing/100495/

[Knut]

From CNN

- ball bearings pulled out of people's legs.
- 10 amputations and lots of leg injuries. 7 multi -system operations

[Trojan97]

Originally Posted by chemgear

Some photos. WARNING - one is VERY gruesome.

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2...ombing/100495/

I would consider myself to be far from squeamish but that very gruesome pic you mentioned absolutely turned my stomach. Oh my god..

[Joborule]

Originally Posted by chemgear

Some photos. WARNING - one is VERY gruesome.

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2...ombing/100495/

####e. That's something straight out of a war zone/gory movie. That truly IS a graphic photo.

[trackercowe]

Originally Posted by chemgear

Some photos. WARNING - one is VERY gruesome.

http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2...ombing/100495/

Oh my. For once a warning about a graphic image was actually graphic. I'd think twice about opening it if you're even a tad bit squeamish.

[Tinordi]

Thanks for the warning.

*avoid*

[sureLoss]

CNN saying that ER doctors are pulling ball bearings out of people near the blast.

[Daradon]

CBC actually had tape of that one injury on their cycle a little while ago, I think they've pulled it since. But yeah, combat type injury pic.

[expo2428]

Yes, I agree. I opened that photo about an hour ago. I was thinking of posting that link but I couldn't come to it. Not that Im blaming the guy who posted the link in this thread or anything like that. It was very gruesome and I recommend not opening it if you want to stay away from the a very graphic photo.

[Reaper]

I clicked on the "image warning" and recoiled when I saw it. That is saying something considering how desensitized the internet has made me. Very graphic and made the horror register with me in a big way.

[chemgear]

Originally Posted by expo2428

Yes, I agree. I opened that photo about an hour ago. I was thinking of posting that link but I couldn't come to it. Not that Im blaming the guy who posted the link in this thread or anything like that. It was very gruesome and I recommend not opening it if you want to stay away from the a very graphic photo.

Yeah, I fear the website had good reason to add their own "click to view" barrier.

Given the discussion about how the explosive was "relatively low powered" on CNN, that individual must have been standing very close to the device.

[T@T]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

I will make a couple of complete gueses here but the fact they were planted bombs and from the look of the explosian not very sophisticated, there is a huge amount of flame and smoke, suggests a not particularly skilled bomb maker without access to decent explosives. This looks like something cooked up from an internet recipie.

As such expect it wont be Al Queda but some home grown nutter, they may claim to be the Black Panther Islamic Revoltionary Front or the like but the whole thing seems way to random and amatuar, I see Al Queda as more likely to use suicide bombers strapped up with C4 (as the suicide aspect really rattles us in the west) and the blast would aim to kill hundreds.

It also strikes me that Boston is fairly close to Sandy Hook so it may turn out to be some wack job punishing those godless north easterners for gun control.

I can't imagine it being easy to get C4 in the US, Al Queda isn't a armed forces, in Irac they get their explosives supplied by the Iranians..in the US it would be a more crude bomb like the one that didn't go off in times square.

Whoever it was it was well thought out to cause the most injurys, one explosion stops the race in it's tracks and 10 seconds later a bomb closer to the race track itself to "get" the stopped runners. reports of ball bearings,nails..etc and about 12 reported people who lost limbs tells me this was not just a nutjob.

[gargamel]

CNN reporting that police are looking for a "darker skinned or black individual" with a foreign accent. He was spotted in the area a few minute before the blasts, had a backpack and tried to gain access to a restricted area.