Forum Views () 
Forum Replies ()  
 
 
Read more with google mobile :
Car bomb scares Times Square, but fails to explode  
 
 
 
 
 
Yahoo!
My Yahoo!
Mail
More Yahoo! Services
Account Options
New User? Sign Up
Sign In
Help
Yahoo! Search
web search
  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
 
 
 
Africa
Europe
Latin America
Middle East
North America
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Car bomb scares Times Square, but fails to explode
 
 
  
 
 By TOM HAYS and CRISTIAN SALAZAR,Associated Press Writers -
 Monday, May  3
 
 
Send
 
IM Story
 
Print
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
NEW YORK – Police found an "amateurish" but potentially powerful bomb that apparently began to detonate but did not explode in a smoking sport utility vehicle in Times Square, authorities said Sunday. Thousands of tourists were cleared from the streets for 10 hours while the bomb was dismantled.
 
"We avoided what we could have been a very deadly event," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. "It certainly could have exploded and had a pretty big fire and a decent amount of explosive impact."
 
Investigators removed three propane tanks, fireworks, two filled 5-gallon gasoline containers, and two clocks with batteries, electrical wire and other components from the back of the Nissan Pathfinder, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said. A black metal box resembling a gun locker was also recovered and will be detonated off site, he said.
 
Bloomberg called the explosive device "amateurish" and Kelly said the explosives were consumer-grade fireworks but could have caused huge damage on a block of Broadway theaters and restaurants teeming with tourists.
 
"I think the intent was to cause a significant ball of fire," Kelly said.
 
Firefighters who arrived shortly after first call heard a popping sound, said Fire Commissioner Sal Cassano, who described the sound as not quite an explosion.
 
The bomb appeared to be starting to detonate but malfunctioned, top police spokesman Paul Browne told The New York Times and Wall Street Journal.
 
No suspects were in custody, although Kelly said a surveillance video showed the car driving west on 45th Street before it parked between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. Police were looking for more video from office buildings that weren't open at the time.
 
"The full attention of city, state and federal law enforcement will be turned to bringing the guilty party to justice in this act of terrorism," Gov. David Paterson said in a statement. Bloomberg did not describe it as an act of terrorism.
 
A T-shirt vendor alerted police to billowing smoke coming from the back of the vehicle at about 6:30 p.m, the height of dinner hour as theatergoers rush to eat before Saturday night shows begin.
 
Smoke was coming from the car, its hazard lights were on and "it was just sitting there," said Rallis Gialaboukis, 37, another vendor who has hawked his wares for 20 years across the street.
 
A white robotic police arm broke windows of the dark-colored Pathfinder to remove any explosive materials. A Connecticut license plate on the vehicle did not match up, Bloomberg said. Police interviewed the Connecticut car owner, who told police he had sent the plates to a nearby junkyard, Bloomberg said.
 
Heavily armed police and emergency vehicles shut down the city's busiest streets, choked with taxis and theatergoers on one of the first summer-like days of the year.
 
Shelly Carlisle, of Portland, Ore., said police crowded into her Broadway theater after the curtain closed on "Next to Normal," a show on the same block where the SUV was found.
 
"At the end of the show, the police came in. We were told we had to leave," Carlisle said. "They said there was a bomb scare."
 
The car was parked on 45th Street, and the block was closed between Seventh and Eighth avenues as a precaution, police said. Times Square lies about four traffic-choked miles north of where terrorists bombed the World Trade Center in 1993, then laid waste to it on Sept. 11, 2001.
 
The block that was closed is one of the prime blocks for Broadway shows, with seven theaters housing such big shows as "Billy Elliot" and "Lend Me a Tenor."
 
The curtain at "God of Carnage" and "Red" opened a half-hour later than usual, but the shows were not canceled, said spokesman Adrian Bryan-Brown.
 
Katy Neubauer, 46, and Becca Saunders, 39, of Milwaukee, were shopping for souvenirs two blocks south of the SUV when they saw panicked crowds.
 
"It was a mass of people running away from the scene," Neubauer said.
 
Said Saunders: "There were too many people, too many cops. I've never seen anything like it."
 
Bloomberg left early from the White House correspondent's dinner Saturday night. President Barack Obama, who attended the annual gala, praised the quick response by the New York Police Department, White House spokesman Nick Shapiro said.
 
He has also directed his homeland security and counterterrorism adviser, John Brennan, to advise New York officials that the federal government is prepared to provide support.
 
Brennan and others will keep Obama up to date on the investigation, Shapiro said.
 
The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York responded along with the NYPD, said agent Richard Kolko.
 
"We have no idea who did this or why," the mayor said Sunday, but said that the city is always a top terrorism target. The latest threat came last fall when air shuttle driver Najibullah Zazi admitted to a foiled homemade bomb plot aimed at the city subway system.
 
"These things invariably ... come back to New York," Bloomberg said.
 
The theater district in London was the target of a propane bomb attack in 2007. No one was injured when police discovered two Mercedes loaded with nails packed around canisters of propane and gasoline.
 
Officials said the device found Saturday was crudely constructed, but Islamic militants have used propane and compressed gas for years to enhance the force of explosives. Those instances include the 1983 suicide attack on the U.S. Marines barracks at the Beirut airport that killed 241 U.S. service members, and the 2007 attack on the international airport in Glasgow, Scotland.
 
In 2007 the U.S. military announced that an al-Qaida front group was using propane to rig car bombs in Iraq.
 
Times Square has been a frequent target, if not for potential terrorists, then for rabble-rousers.
 
In December, a van without license plates parked in Times Square led police to block off part of the area for about two hours. A police robot examined the vehicle, and clothes, racks and scarves were found inside.
 
In March 2008, a hooded bicyclist hurled an explosive device at a military recruiting center in the heart of Times Square, producing a flash, smoke and full-scale emergency response. No suspect was ever identified.
 
Police have spent years trying to crack down on street hustlers and peddlers preying on tourists. But there have been two major gunfights in recent months. A street hustler armed with a machine pistol exchanged shots in December, shattering a Broadway theater ticket window, before police fatally shot the man.
 
Four separate instances of shootings and more than 50 arrests on a mile-long stretch of Manhattan last month around Times Square prompted the mayor to call the mayhem "wilding."
 
___
 
Contributing to this report were AP Washington bureau chief Ron Fournier, AP Radio correspondent Julie Walker in New York and Associated Press writers Eileen Sullivan and Pete Yost in Washington, Michael Kuchwara in New York and Robert H. Reid in Kabul.
 
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
Recommend
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Send
 
IM Story
 
Print
 
 
 
 
 
 
Related Articles
 
 
Gunfire erupts during Darfur 'Ponzi' protest AFP - 2 hours 42 minutes ago
 
Israeli, Palestinian talks 'within days' AFP -  30 minutes ago
 
Car bombing foiled in New York's Times Square AFP -  48 minutes ago
 
UK-World Summary Reuters -  51 minutes ago
 
Obama to visit scene of US oil spill AFP -  52 minutes ago
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
News Search
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Top Stories
 
 
 
 
Higgins's snooker future in question over match-fixing claims
Obama to visit scene of US oil spill
Spain reverses rise in unemployment: report
Greece agrees painful cuts in return for bailout
Shroud of Turin 'mirrors' human suffering: pope
 
 
 
 More Top Stories »
 
 
 
ADVERTISEMENT
 
  
 
 
 
 
Most Popular
 
 
 
 
Most Viewed
 
Most Recommended
 
 
 
 
Obama jokes about his ratings and nationality
 
Greece agrees painful cuts in return for bailout
 
Hundreds gather for US May Day immigration protests
 
Shroud of Turin 'mirrors' human suffering: pope
 
New York police foil Times Square car bombing
 
 
 More Most Viewed »
 
 
 
 
 
Aliens may exist but contact would hurt: Hawking
 
Apple engineer loses iPhone prototype
 
French driving veil row escalates
 
Airlines want compensation as Europe's skies reopen
 
 
 More Most Recommended »
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
Elsewhere on Yahoo!
 
 
 
 
Financial news on Yahoo! Finance
 
 
Stars and latest movies
 
 
Best travel destinations
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
More on Yahoo! News
 
 
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Subscribe to our news feeds
Top StoriesMy Yahoo!RSS
» More news feeds | What are news feeds?
 
Also on Yahoo
 
Answers
Groups
Mail
Messenger
Mobile
Travel
Finance
Movies
Sports
Games
» All Yahoo! Services
 
Site Highlights
 
Singapore
Full Coverage
Most Popular
Asia Entertainment
Photos
World Cup 2010
 
 
 
 Copyright © 2010 Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte. Ltd. (Co. Reg. No. 199700735D). All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Service |
Privacy Policy |
Community |
Intellectual Property Rights Policy |
Help
  
   
 
 
    
   
 
Other News on Sunday,  2 May 2010 Arab League gives backing to indirect Mideast talks  
EU sugar companies big winners from CAP subsidies  
Bolivia nationalizes electricity companies  
Governments, businesses to discuss cybersecurity threats  
Fresh poll blow to British PM as papers turn against him  
Hundreds gather for US May Day immigration protests  
Soldiers kidnapped in south Yemen, U.S. embassy warns staff
|  
South Africa's Zuma promises laws curbing casual labor
|  
Papal envoy to run scandal-plagued priestly order
|  
Syria warns U.S. on accepting Israel scud claims
|  
Nepal Maoist leader calls strike at anti-govt protest  
US Army captain becomes king in Afghanistan  
Chinese city goes on defense after school attack  
May Day protestors rally across Asia  
Suicide bomber in Pakistan's Swat kills 5  
Taiwan China flight diverted after explosive claim  
Maoists rally in Nepal, announce general strike  
Arab League backs resumption of Middle East talks  
Eurozone set to endorse Greek bailout plan Sunday  
Thai PM talks tough, red shirts refuse to give in
|  
Privacy vs profit at Facebook  
Arab League backs resumption of Middle East talks
|  
Deadly blast overshadows Russia's May Day events  
Weather hampers oil spill efforts in Gulf of Mexico  
Spain April unemployment fall leaked to press
|  
Obama jokes about his ratings and nationality  
Colombian rebels kill five soldiers in coca field
|  
Greek crisis to dominate ECB Lisbon meeting: analysts  
US oil production, shipping unaffected by spill so far  
Japan PM to meet mayors of proposed site for US base  
NY car bomb threatened 'very deadly event': officials  
S.Korea minister vows retaliation over sunk warship  
Maoist strike shuts down Nepal; gov't urges talks  
NY's Times Square evacuated in car bomb scare  
Australian racer McFarlane dies in crash  
Mass. water main break affects Boston, suburbs  
NY's Times Square evacuated in bomb scare  
Thai premier says no plans for martial law  
Ark. tornadoes kill woman, gov declares emergency  
Poor man's Gatorade saves Bangladeshi kids  
Anger over Ariz. immigration law drives US rallies  
Myanmar's junta prepares ground for elections  
Ancient treasures set for auction in Indonesia  
China steps up security at schools after attacks  
Obama to visit U.S. Gulf as oil slick threatens  
Shanghai Expo giant opportunity for big business  
U.S. Hispanics decry Arizona law at May Day rallies  
India weighs capital controls with rupee on rise  
Spielberg, Scorsese call for release of Iran film-maker  
China's cinemas set for record box office in 2010  
Heavy metal dinosaurs rock the kiddie crowd in Finland  
US-ENTERTAINMENT Summary  
Tourists in Copenhagen lament loss of Little Mermaid  
Spielberg, Scorsese call for release of Iran film-maker  
Shroud of Turin 'mirrors' human suffering: pope  
Factbox: Turkey's constitutional reform  
Palestinian leader says to meet Obama in Washington  
Magnitude 5.8 quake hits Chile, no damage reported
|  
Greece agrees painful cuts in return for bailout  
Police open fire in Darfur investment protest -witnesses  
Police open fire in Darfur investment protest: witnesses
|  
Baghdad cafe waitresses break down barriers  
New York police foil Times Square car bombing  
Iran says develops short-range missile defense
|  
One dead, 80 hurt in Iraq bus bombing  
Greece secures unprecedented bailout: PM  
Threatening Note Found On Philadelphia-Bound Plane  
UK election gets personal
|  
Police Kill Charging Bull On Texas Interstate  
Pakistani jets target Taliban positions, kill 19
|  
Illinois Congressman Arrested During Arizona Immigration Law Protest  
Storms kill 15 Bangladeshis, thousands homeless
|  
Authorities Start Man-Hunt In Attempted New York City Carbombing  
NY City Dodges A Bullet After Car Bomb Found In New York's Times Square  
Palestinian leader says to meet Obama in Washington
|  
Somali insurgents seize pirate haven
|  
U.N. says investigating LRA massacre of 100 in Congo
|  
Bangladesh sentences 9 border guards for mutiny  
Thai cabinet holds emergency meeting on crisis  
Iran to propose reforms at US nuclear talks  
Thai premier says no plans for martial law  
Israeli, Palestinian talks 'within days'  
Car bombing foiled in New York's Times Square  
Afghan civilian deaths are rising, government says  
5 killed in heavy flooding across Tennessee  
Maoist strike shuts down Nepal; gov't urges talks  
Car bomb scares Times Square, but fails to explode  
Obama to visit scene of US oil spill  
New Delhi on alert as embassies warn of attack  
Small fire spreads smoke at US Embassy in Pakistan  
Officials: At least 5 dead in Tenn. flooding  
Thai PM talks tough, "red shirts" refuse to give in  
China raises bank reserve ratio to rein in lending  
US-Taiwanese man held after bomb hoax on plane  
Shroud of Turin 'mirrors' human suffering: pope  
'Demjanjuk: a Holocaust cabaret' hits German stage  
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro  
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found  
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever  
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production  
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time  
AMD to Start Production of piledriver  
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs  
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia  
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air  
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch  
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent  
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up  
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform  
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis  
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets  
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights