ABC News
An 8-year-old boy was one of two casualties when bombs tore into the Boston Marathon today, a law enforcement source told ABC News.
At least 115 people were injured, including several children with severe trauma, when bombs exploded almost simultaneously at the crowded Boston Marathon on a day that was supposed to be one of celebration.
Within hours of the explosions, law enforcement officials, including those with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, were questioning a potential person of interest at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where many of the injured were taken, sources told ABC News. Officials cautioned that it was too soon to say whether the person was an important witness or a person of interest.
The two bombs exploded near the race finish line on Boylston Street before 3 p.m. The area was crowded with runners and spectators, and thousands of runners were still completing the race at the time of the first explosion.
Police said that two people were killed. At least 99 were taken to hospitals with injuries, including some which have been described as amputations and severe burns.
Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis declined to say whether he thought the devices were acts of terrorism, but said, “You can reach your own conclusion based on what happened.”
According to law enforcement sources, the first bomb exploded at the Marathon Sports running store, and blew out windows in four nearby buildings, injuring 15 to 20 individuals. The second blast occurred about 50 to 100 yards away, severely injuring more bystanders, Davis said.
Authorities believe they were caused by small portable devices, sources told ABC News. More than 400 National Guardsmen in attendance at the marathon helped secure a perimeter around the scene.
One witness described the scene as being like a “warzone,” while a doctor who was standing nearby said he immediately started treating people with severe leg injuries.
“Six or so people went down right away on my left, mostly with leg injuries. One gentleman had both legs below the knee blown off,” Dr. Allan Panter, a physician who witnessed the event, told ABC News. “One girl I treated, I could not find any obvious injury to her torso, but she arrested. She was between 24 and 30.”
“The people had singed facial hair and stuff, most of the injuries were on their legs,” Panter said. “I was 20 feet away, one storefront down, my ears were ringing. Everything blew out from the storefront.”
Police initially said a third explosion occurred later at John F. Kennedy Library in Boston, but later said it was related to a fire. No one was injured at the library, police said.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a temporary flight restriction over the area of the explosion.
Police are asking for all video footage of the finish line at the time of the explosion.
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- Video: Second explosion at Boston marathon caught on tape (cbsnews.com)
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