Terror in Moscow Kills Approximately 100 People

Terror in Moscow Kills Approximately 100 People. February. 06, 2004 22:57. by Ki-Hyun Kim kimkihy@donga.com.

In Moscow, Russia, a bomb explosion, which appeared to be a suicide bomb attack, occurred on February 6 at a subway station, killing 30 people and leaving approximately 350 people wounded, reported the Russian non-governmental television network provider, NTV. “Because almost every one of the wounded victims is in a fatal condition, it seems that the number of deaths will pass 100 in the near future,” added NTV.

According to the emergency control center in Russia, the blast destroyed the second car of the train, which was traveling from Paveletskaya station to Avtozavodskaya station, around 8:40 a.m. (local time). It is known that train carried about 1500 commuters at the time. “When the train departed from the station and went about 500 meters, a fire broke out along with a loud explosion, filling the underground tunnel with smoke,” remarked the observers. The train kept moving for another 300 meters even after the explosion.

At the spot, 50 ambulances and rescue team arrived to rescue 700 people. In order to prevent the chances of additional explosions, police closed down the neighboring subway stations and evacuated the citizens. The major hospitals in Moscow have started undergoing an emergency countermeasure to receive the wounded victims.

Quoting the remarks of the official from the Russian Federation Intelligence Agency, “I have reported to the president, Vladimir Putin, that this is the suicide attack brought about by the Chechen terrorists,” passed on the government run news agency, Nobosti News. The related intelligence agencies assessed, “The explosive possessed the power equivalent to that of a two-kilogram sized TNT bomb.” Russian authorities have proclaimed an emergency situation against terrorism in the major urban areas including Moscow due to the repeatedly occurring bomb attacks in the Chechen area.