- Explosion had no “international terrorism” ties, but any bomb is “terrorist” activity, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says.
- Several people were detained late Sunday in connection with the bomb.
- 29 people injured in the blast have been treated and released from the hospital.
- Police reportedly found a second device, described as a pressure cooker bomb, nearby.
“About an hour ago, the FBI took several individuals into custody on the Belt Parkway in the area underneath the Verrazano Bridge, with a possible connection to the bombing last night in Chelsea,” New York State Sen. Marty Golden (R) wrote on Instagram.
The New York Times said the FBI had taken five people to its office in Manhattan for questioning, and that some or all may be from the same family. However, the agency told the newspaper “no one has been charged with any crime.”
The city was under heightened security and an increased police presence following the explosion, which prompted an investigation into a potential terror link, officials said.
“I want New Yorkers to be confident when they go back to work Monday that New York is up and running and that we’re doing everything we need to do,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said Sunday.
The city was already planning to increase police presence as foreign dignitaries arrive for the United Nations General Assembly meeting this week; after Saturday night’s explosion, residents and visitors should expect a “bigger than ever” presence, de Blasio said. Canines and heavy weapons teams have been assigned to transit hubs and stations, said Police Chief of Department Carlos Gomez.
An additional 1,000 New York State Police and National Guard officers have also been deployed to subway stations, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday.
The governor characterized Saturday night’s powerful blast in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood as “an act of terrorism,” but said it has not been linked to any international terror group.
No global terrorist groups have claimed responsibility for the blast.
Law enforcement is disclosing little about the investigation so as not to tip off possible suspects, said Bill Sweeney, assistant director of the FBI.
The explosive device went off on 23rd Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues Saturday evening, an area of the city that is teeming with nightlife on the weekends. A second device was found near the blast site and police are determining if it is an explosive, authorities said. That device has been sent to the FBI’s lab in Quantico for analysis, Sgt. Brendan Ryan told The Huffington Post.
Law enforcement is disclosing little about the investigation so as not to tip off possible suspects, said Bill Sweeney, assistant director of the FBI, adding “it’s vitally important that we don’t disclose information that would inform the suspects.”
The incident did not appear to be related an explosion in New Jersey earlier on Saturday, when one pipe bomb exploded and two more were recovered along the route of a 5K charity race, authorities said. A July incident in which a pipe bomb injured a tourist in New York’s Central Park was also not related, they said.
Police are reviewing video of the Chelsea blast, which happened shortly after 8 p.m., said NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill, whose first day on the job was Saturday. They have not yet identified a suspect, he added.
Security cameras in a nearby buildings captured the blast:
Officers responded to
reports of a second explosive device nearby, on 27th Street between
Sixth and Seventh Avenues, just before 11 p.m. Police recovered a bag
with a pressure cooker connected to wires and a cell phone, NBC News and NY1 reported.
Cuomo said the second device was “similar in design” to the one that blew up on 23rd Street; the multi-part explosive recovered in New Jersey was different, he said.
Cuomo said the second device was “similar in design” to the one that blew up on 23rd Street; the multi-part explosive recovered in New Jersey was different, he said.
Cuomo said Sunday that there
were no fatalities and that all of the injured had been released from
the hospital. He noted that at least 1,000 extra officers and the
National Guard had been mobilized to monitor the city’s subway system.
“A bomb going off is, generically, linked to terrorist activity. And that’s how we’re going to prosecute it,” he said, speaking from the site of the blast.
Many of the injuries were the result of shrapnel, which witnesses said had come from a dumpster that exploded outside the Townhouse Inn of Chelsea at 131 West 23rd Street, multiple news outlets reported. However, O’Neill said officers were still trying to determine the source of the explosion.
Visitors crowded the barricades that police used to block off the area, which is a popular nightlife destination. Many onlookers were stranded tourists, who were unable to return to their hotels.
“A bomb going off is, generically, linked to terrorist activity. And that’s how we’re going to prosecute it,” he said, speaking from the site of the blast.
Many of the injuries were the result of shrapnel, which witnesses said had come from a dumpster that exploded outside the Townhouse Inn of Chelsea at 131 West 23rd Street, multiple news outlets reported. However, O’Neill said officers were still trying to determine the source of the explosion.
Visitors crowded the barricades that police used to block off the area, which is a popular nightlife destination. Many onlookers were stranded tourists, who were unable to return to their hotels.
President Barack Obama was due to travel to New York City on Sunday ahead of a United Nations General Assembly session, scheduled to begin Monday.
Chelsea, a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Manhattan, is a popular nightlife destination and is usually bustling on weekends. The intersection near the site of the explosion, Sixth Avenue and 23rd Street, is one of several train hubs in the area, just south of Madison Square Garden and north of Chelsea Market and Google’s corporate campus, and 23rd street is also a busy thoroughfare for crosstown traffic.
Meg Robertson, a HuffPost employee, felt the blast in her home, eight blocks south.
“It was like a huge strike of thunder that shook the block,” she said. “All my windows were closed, and the sound felt like something massive.
Chelsea, a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Manhattan, is a popular nightlife destination and is usually bustling on weekends. The intersection near the site of the explosion, Sixth Avenue and 23rd Street, is one of several train hubs in the area, just south of Madison Square Garden and north of Chelsea Market and Google’s corporate campus, and 23rd street is also a busy thoroughfare for crosstown traffic.
Meg Robertson, a HuffPost employee, felt the blast in her home, eight blocks south.
“It was like a huge strike of thunder that shook the block,” she said. “All my windows were closed, and the sound felt like something massive.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump
told supporters at a Colorado rally that a bomb had gone off in New
York City, despite no officials stating that this had happened.
“Just before I got off the plane, a bomb went off in New York and nobody knows exactly what’s going on,” Trump said. “We better get very tough.”
Though Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton initially described the blasts in New York City and New Jersey as bombings, she later said “it’s important to know the facts” before citing the cause of a such incidents.
“I think it’s always wiser to wait until you have information before making conclusions,” she said, in response to Trump’s comments.
Watch the video below abeg
http://videos.vidible.tv/prod/2016-09/18/57de0d14869ea9125c86721d_853x480_v1.mp4?bgJxnhKZ2e-T_MCUTyWMnuvKQdQ0cEjXXvWpoqYdOh2A4HXjELQkl1_T4EH3j1S0
“Just before I got off the plane, a bomb went off in New York and nobody knows exactly what’s going on,” Trump said. “We better get very tough.”
Though Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton initially described the blasts in New York City and New Jersey as bombings, she later said “it’s important to know the facts” before citing the cause of a such incidents.
“I think it’s always wiser to wait until you have information before making conclusions,” she said, in response to Trump’s comments.
Watch the video below abeg
http://videos.vidible.tv/prod/2016-09/18/57de0d14869ea9125c86721d_853x480_v1.mp4?bgJxnhKZ2e-T_MCUTyWMnuvKQdQ0cEjXXvWpoqYdOh2A4HXjELQkl1_T4EH3j1S0
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