Police: 2 dead, more than 100 injured in Boston Marathon explosions

BOSTON — Boston officials say two people are dead and more than 130 are injured — at least 15 critically — after a series of explosions shattered the finish of the Boston Marathon on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry away the injured while stragglers in the 26.2-mile race were rerouted away from the smoking site.

Updates:

Speaking from the White House just three hours after the explosions, Obama was cautious in his remarks, stopping short of calling the incident an act of terror.

Obama said the explosions were the act of an individual or group, but vowed to hold those responsible accountable.

"We will find out who did this. We'll find out why they did this," Obama said in his brief, three-minute statement. "Any responsible individuals, any responsible groups, will feel the full weight of justice."

Boston hospitals have reported treating at least 134 injuries — at least 15 of which are critical — as a result of the explosions, the Associated Press reports. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette staff have contacted all Arkansans who competed in the marathon or their family members and confirmed that none were injured in the explosions.

A third explosion was heard just before 4 p.m., about an hour after the first two blasts, at the JFK Library nearby. A U.S. intelligence official told the Associated Press earlier that two more explosive devices had been found and were being dismantled.

One senior counterterrorism official said it was too soon to tell whether the explosions were related to terrorism.

Boston police confirmed they were looking into the explosions, but made no further comment. Another senior U.S. government official said the Boston police and the FBI said they had received no reports in recent days about a threat of an attack on the marathon and that there was no warning Monday.

Cell phone companies say service is operating in the Boston area, but with heavy traffic.

A law enforcement official, citing an intelligence briefing, said cell phone service had been shut down Monday in the Boston area to prevent any potential remote detonations of explosives.

But officials with Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel said there had been no such requests.

Sprint spokeswoman Crystal Davis said: "Minus some mild call blocking on our Boston network due to increased traffic, our service is operating normally."

Wesley Hunt, 30, of Little Rock, had already finished the race and was back in his hotel room when he found out about the explosions. "I didn't know anything about it, until really, I was laying in bed, checked my phone and my wife and my dad had called. I was able to get text messages out, and I turned on CNN and it was a madhouse," he said.

"One of the news outlets was reporting that the explosions occurred about an hour after the initial finishers crossed. I'm a high two-hour marathoner, so an hour after is usually when I'm finishing. ... It was scary for a lot of people back home."

Original story:

Competitors and race volunteers were crying as they fled the chaos. Bloody spectators were being carried to the medical tent that had been set up to care for fatigued runners.

"There are a lot of people down," said one man, whose bib No. 17528 identified him as Frank Deruyter of North Carolina. He was not injured, but marathon workers were carrying one woman, who did not appear to be a runner, to the medical area as blood gushed from her leg. A Boston police officer was wheeled from the course with a leg injury that was bleeding.

About three hours after the winners crossed the line, there was a loud explosion on the north side of Boylston Street, just before the photo bridge that marks the finish line. Another explosion could be heard a few seconds later.

Smoke rose from the blasts, fluttering through the national flags lining the route of the world's oldest and most prestigious marathon. TV helicopter footage showed blood staining the pavement in the popular shopping and tourist area known as the Back Bay.

"There are people who are really, really bloody," said Laura McLean, a runner from Toronto, who was in the medical tent being treated for dehydration when she was pulled out to make room for victims of the explosions. "They were pulling them into the medical tent."

Cherie Falgoust was waiting for her husband, who was running the race.

"I was expecting my husband any minute," she said. "I don't know what this building is ... it just blew. Just a big bomb, a loud boom, and then glass everywhere. Something hit my head. I don't know what it was. I just ducked."

Runners who had not finished the race were diverted straight down Commonwealth Avenue and into a family meeting area, according to an emergency plan that had been in place.

According to the Boston Marathon website, 37 Arkansans were entered runners. So far, 21 have finished, according to the site.

Little Rock native Jeffrey Glasbrenner, who was competing in the marathon when the explosions occurred, described the scene to ArkansasOnline in an e-mailed statement. "Craziness ... People are crying! Neighbors in area bringing out food and water. Weird experience to say the least! We are told to wait until further instruction," he said.

Little Rock Marathon Executive Directors Gina Pharis and Geneva Hampton expressed their sympathies in an e-mailed statement Monday afternoon. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the victims of today’s senseless act in Boston," they wrote. "Safety is always the top concern of any race, and something like today’s event is truly tragic."

ArkansasOnline will update this story with details as they become available.

Read Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

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