29 HURT IN LONDON TRAIN BOMBING
29 injured in train blast during London rush
A HOMEMADE bomb exploded on a packed London subway car on Friday, injuring 29 people and reigniting simmering fears in a country already rattled by four other terror attacks this year.
The device, which failed to fully explode, engulfed a morning rush hour train car in flames and sent panicked passengers fleeing from the Parsons Green station in southwest London, officials said.
Those closest to the explosion suffered burns, while others were injured in a stampede of people trying to exit the station, one of the above-ground stops on the primarily underground network, known as the Tube.
Rory Rigney had just stepped aboard when the blast went off, sending a “big flash of light” and a “yellow or orange” fireball through the car, he told the Guardian.
Rigney, 37, said he saw red wires coming out of a bucket, which was wrapped in a plastic bag from a grocery store.
“It smelled like a fire extinguisher and there was this foam on the floor,” Rigney said. “It looked like foam from a fire extinguisher.”
More than 250 people were evacuated from the train in the leafy residential neighborhood after the initial chaos, according to London’s fire department.
“I ended up squashed on the staircase. People were falling over, people fainting, crying. There were little kids clinging onto the back of me,” said another commuter, Ryan Barnett.
Many victims appeared to have “flash burns,” Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley told reporters.
The department’s counterterrorism unit took over the investigation Friday morning, he added, and was coordinating with British intelligence.
No arrests have been made, police added, as authorities scanned surveillance footage for clues.
British officials raised the country’s terror-threat level to “critical” — meaning another attack is expected shortly — after ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan called for calm amid the latest scare.
“As London has proven again and again, we will never be intimidated or defeated by terrorism,” he said in a statement.
Britain has seen four other terrorism attacks this year, which have left a total of 36 people dead.
The other attacks in London — near Parliament, on London Bridge and near a mosque in Finsbury Park in north London — were all carried out by assailants using vehicles and knives. Some of those attackers donned fake explosive vests as they carried out their plots.
The last time England’s threat level was raised to critical was following the May 22 suicide-bomb attack at an Arianna Grande concert in Manchester that killed 22 people.
President Trump weighed in on the attack in a series of tweets, saying it was carried out “by a loser terrorist,” and brought up his travel ban.
British Prime Minister Theresa May gently rebuked the President for his tweets.
“I never think it’s helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation,” she said.
The commander-in-chief later called the blast a “terrible thing” and called May to offer his support.
Gov. Cuomo condemned the attack, adding state law enforcement would have an increased presence throughout New York’s transit system as well as airports, bridges and tunnels.
New York City’s top cop ordered an uptick in security following the bombing in London. Cops had a visible presence in the subway system.
“NYPD closely monitoring incident on London subway moments ago,” Police Commissioner James O’Neill posted to Twitter. “No direct threats to NYC, but always remain vigilant/aware of surroundings.”