London Blasts (July 21, 2005)

21 July 2005

Shepherd's Bush: Reports of small explosion. Eyewitnesses reportedly see man run from scene. Large area cordoned off, some road closures still in place.

Oval: Man runs off train after a small bang as train reaches station, eyewitnesses reportedly say. Large area cordoned off, now reopened.

Warren Street: Witnesses report hearing bang at front of train, passengers running to back of train and evacuating at station. Large area cordoned off. Roads now reopened but pavements still closed.

Hackney Road: Explosion on the top deck of number 26 bus travelling from Waterloo to Hackney. Large area cordoned off. Hackney Road remains closed.

University College Hospital: Armed police officers deployed for "incident", thought to be search for suspect. Large area cordoned off. Incident briefly "stood down" but police returned later to search premises, sealing off three rooms.

Arrests: A total of four people were arrested, three subsequently released. One man remains in custody but is not thought to be directly involved.

Tube closures: Hammersmith & City line closed, most of Victoria and Piccadilly lines closed, Northern line partly closed. Circle line remains closed due to the 7 July attacks, as do parts of the District and Metropolitan lines.


Chronological detail of the events. All times are British Daylight Saving Time = GMT + 1 Hr

1225: Shepherd's Bush Underground station on the Hammersmith and City line is evacuated.
1230: Ambulance services are called to the Oval Underground station on the Northern Line. The station is evacuated.
1245: Ambulance services are called to the Warren Street station on the Northern and Victoria lines. The station is evacuated.
1321: Fire service says smoke seen coming from Warren Street Tube station.
1325: London Underground announces services suspended on three lines: Victoria, Northern and Hammersmith & City.
1330: Police respond to reports of an explosion on a Number 26 bus in Bethnal Green, east London. There are no injuries.
          A spokesman for Stagecoach said the driver of the number 26 bus travelling through Shoreditch had heard a bang on upper deck, gone upstairs and seen
          the windows were blown out. The bus driver was very shaken but said to be fine.
1345: Transport for London imposes a Code Amber on all affected Tube lines - meaning all passengers are immediately taken off trains at
          stations and moved above ground.
1411: Police cordon off a large area around University College Hospital, which is near Warren Street station.
1428: Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair says Thursday's incidents are "clearly very serious" but that the explosions were smaller than
          those which killed 56 people two weeks ago. He says the transport system will close down "for a short while". The minor explosions
          - just two weeks after the July 7^th blasts - involved detonators only.
1430: UK Government's emergency-response team Cobra meets at Downing Street, with Prime Minister Tony Blair, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw
           and Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair attending.
1443: Police ask people to remain at work or at home.
1503: Police appeal for anyone with photos or mobile phone images from the incident scenes to send them to www.police.uk.
1522: Police say no trace of chemical agents is found at Warren Street station following tests.
1545: Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair says the situation is "fully under control". He says there is no indication of chemical or other
           unconventional attack, and that there has been only one casualty - not a fatality. He adds that the blasts appear to have been nearly simultaneous.
1547: Prime Minister Tony Blair says incidents such as Thursday's are designed to frighten people, adding: "We've just got to react calmly
          and continue with our business - as much as possible - as normal."
1610: No traces of chemical agents are found at any of the incident sites, police say.
1750: Sir Ian says London is "back to business". He says it will take "a little bit longer" to determine whether there is a connection
          between the incidents on Thursday and those of 7 July - but adds that the intention on Thursday "must have been to kill".