thanos
07-21-2005, 04:00 PM
Small bombs hit London transport
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Four small bombs have exploded on Underground subway stations and a bus in London, two weeks after the July 7 terror attacks, police said.
Police said there were small explosions at Warren Street, Oval and Shepherd's Bush stations and an incident was reported on a bus in east London.
Metropolitan Police Chief Sir Ian Blair said the explosions were "smaller than on the last occasion but we do not know the implications of all this yet."
Thursday's bombs came two weeks to the day since bombs on three Tube trains on a bus killed 52 people and four of the bombers.
Transport Police told ITN there was an injury when a device exploded on an Underground train near the Warren Street station, in the center of the capital. There are no other reports of casualties.
The area around the station has been sealed off and a bomb squad is on the scene to check for any other explosive devices.
All three stations were evacuated and the three affected Tube lines -- Hammersmith & City, Victoria and Northern -- have been closed, according to a spokesperson for Transport for London.
Scotland Yard also responded to a report of a blast on a bus in Hackney, east London. The bus appeared to be intact and a witness said a bomb-sniffing dog was on the scene.
A bus company spokesman told ITN the driver of the 26 bus heard a "bang" from the top of his bus. The driver said windows were blown out of the bus. No injuries were reported.
Police said they were not treating the evacuations as a "major incident."
Ambulances were called to Oval station at 12:38 p.m. (7:38 a.m. ET), and sent three vehicles. At 12:45 p.m., a call came in from Warren Street. Five vehicles were sent there.
The ambulance service had no details on the incident at Shepherd's Bush station, five kilometers (three miles) west of the center of the capital.
Bryce Elder, a witness near that station, said there was a heavy police presence but "no real sense of panic."
Police helicopters flew overhead and areas near Shepherd's Bush station were evacuated. Elder said the station was not very busy.
CNN London producer Katie Turner reported a heavy police presence near the Oval station, including about 30 police vehicles. Roads about 500 meters from the station have been blocked off to vehicular traffic, she said.
A woman who was on the train at the Oval station when the incident happened said she did not hear a bang, but saw people pushing themselves into her carriage.
She said there was a general mood of panic, but the train was not packed. The train was moving when the incident happened.
Other people said they smelled sour smoke.
An explosives expert contacted by CNN says the "sour smell" reported by people coming out of the underground would likely have come from two sources: the rucksack catching fire; and the explosives themselves catching fire after the detonator failed to explode them. The explosives could actually burn and give a toxic smell.
Prime Minister Tony Blair postponed a planned photocall with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, on an official visit to Britain and planned to address the nation later Thursday.
The White House said President George W. Bush has been informed of the incidents.
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Four small bombs have exploded on Underground subway stations and a bus in London, two weeks after the July 7 terror attacks, police said.
Police said there were small explosions at Warren Street, Oval and Shepherd's Bush stations and an incident was reported on a bus in east London.
Metropolitan Police Chief Sir Ian Blair said the explosions were "smaller than on the last occasion but we do not know the implications of all this yet."
Thursday's bombs came two weeks to the day since bombs on three Tube trains on a bus killed 52 people and four of the bombers.
Transport Police told ITN there was an injury when a device exploded on an Underground train near the Warren Street station, in the center of the capital. There are no other reports of casualties.
The area around the station has been sealed off and a bomb squad is on the scene to check for any other explosive devices.
All three stations were evacuated and the three affected Tube lines -- Hammersmith & City, Victoria and Northern -- have been closed, according to a spokesperson for Transport for London.
Scotland Yard also responded to a report of a blast on a bus in Hackney, east London. The bus appeared to be intact and a witness said a bomb-sniffing dog was on the scene.
A bus company spokesman told ITN the driver of the 26 bus heard a "bang" from the top of his bus. The driver said windows were blown out of the bus. No injuries were reported.
Police said they were not treating the evacuations as a "major incident."
Ambulances were called to Oval station at 12:38 p.m. (7:38 a.m. ET), and sent three vehicles. At 12:45 p.m., a call came in from Warren Street. Five vehicles were sent there.
The ambulance service had no details on the incident at Shepherd's Bush station, five kilometers (three miles) west of the center of the capital.
Bryce Elder, a witness near that station, said there was a heavy police presence but "no real sense of panic."
Police helicopters flew overhead and areas near Shepherd's Bush station were evacuated. Elder said the station was not very busy.
CNN London producer Katie Turner reported a heavy police presence near the Oval station, including about 30 police vehicles. Roads about 500 meters from the station have been blocked off to vehicular traffic, she said.
A woman who was on the train at the Oval station when the incident happened said she did not hear a bang, but saw people pushing themselves into her carriage.
She said there was a general mood of panic, but the train was not packed. The train was moving when the incident happened.
Other people said they smelled sour smoke.
An explosives expert contacted by CNN says the "sour smell" reported by people coming out of the underground would likely have come from two sources: the rucksack catching fire; and the explosives themselves catching fire after the detonator failed to explode them. The explosives could actually burn and give a toxic smell.
Prime Minister Tony Blair postponed a planned photocall with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, on an official visit to Britain and planned to address the nation later Thursday.
The White House said President George W. Bush has been informed of the incidents.