Photo: A woman is comforted by a man near a triage tent set up for the
Boston Marathon after explosions went off at the 117th Boston Marathon in
Boston, Massachusetts April 15, 2013. (Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi)
Hundreds
of runners who had expected to leave Boston on Tuesday morning with a sense of
triumph after a night of celebration, left instead with heavy hearts after at
least three people were killed and more than 140 were injured in the “Boston
Marathon Blasts.”
Some
of the victims lost limbs and suffered grievous wounds; among them the death of
an 8-year-old boy, Martin Richard of Dorchester. Friends and family gathered Monday night at a
restaurant to mourn him; he had been watching the marathon with his family.
Rudy Giuliani, mayor of New York City during the 9/11 attacks, said in
an interview Tuesday morning that it was "surprising" there haven't
been more terror attacks in the US in the last decade.
Authorities have not established the source of the “Boston Attack;” no
one has claimed responsibility and police say there are no suspects.
“It’s surprising there haven’t been more of these since September 11th,”
Giuliani said on CBS’s “This Morning.” “We expected many attacks like this. The
really remarkable story is that so many have been prevented. The reality is
what we’ve been doing hasn’t worked 100 percent, but it’s worked well. And now
we have to learn from this to prevent something like this from happening in the
future also."
Boston Globe columnist Kevin Cullen took
the measure of the city's loss:
“The
marathon is the city's signature event – a tangible link with the rest of the
world. It is one of the few things that allows us to cling to that pretence of
Boston being the hub of the universe.
‘Patriot’s
Day’ is a celebration of our revolutionary history, but we share it with the
world. It is the one day of the year when the city is its most diverse, with
people from so many other countries here to run those 26 miles from Hopkinton
to the Back Bay.
And
so it was alternately poignant and horrifying to watch as first responders
frantically pulled metal barriers and the flags of so many different countries
down into Boylston Street in a desperate rush to get to the dead and the
injured on the sidewalk.”
The FBI is leading federal, state and local law enforcement agencies in
investigating the bombings, Reuters reports. A White House official told the
news agency the case would be treated as an act of terrorism but it was not
clear yet whether it came from a foreign or domestic source.
Reuters said the bombs used gunpowder as the explosive and were packed
with ball bearings and other shrapnel to maximise injuries.
Boston mayor Tom Menino expressed sympathy for the victims of the
blasts. "We grieve for them. We grieve for the little boy. We're going to make
sure the city pulls together. It’s a
very difficult time in our city's history, but Boston is a strong city, and we
will all work together,” he added.
The organisers of Sunday's London Marathon have just posted a statement
on their Facebook page saying that the event will go ahead as originally
scheduled. The organisers have ensured
that they have full support in all aspects of the event to safeguard their runners,
spectators, volunteers and everyone connected with the event.
A comment from Adrian Nobby Clarke underneath the statement summed up
the mood of Sunday's runners: "I will run and I will finish. Let's do it
for Boston."
Weight
for me tomorrow. Paul
Paul Lambis is the author of “Where is Home?” – A journey of hilarious contrasts.
For more information on Paul Lambis, and to order his book online,
visit www.paul-lambis.com
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