New York: Dumpster Bomb Rocks Chelsea, Injuring 29; Second Device Found Nearby
September 18th, 2016Via: New York Post:
A “deafening’’ explosion rocked Chelsea Saturday night, injuring 29 people, blowing out scores of windows and forcing the evacuation of at least two buildings.
The blast went off in a 4-by-4-by-3-foot construction Dumpster outside the Townhouse Inn of Chelsea at 131 W. 23d St.
Mayor de Blasio called the explosion an “intentional act,’’ but not believed to be connected to terrorism.
But tensions only rose when, three hours after the blast, a second device was found four blocks away — a pressure cooker that an early investigation found was likely also a bomb.
“The bomb squad believes it’s real,” a police source with knowledge of the investigation told The Post of that second device, found at 27th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues. The cooker was safely removed from the scene by NYPD.
The strength of the W. 23rd St. blast sent the Dumpster flying from the north side of the street to the south sidewalk, and it landed without hitting anyone or anything, police sources told The Post.
One of the injuries “may be considered serious,” de Blasio said. That victim suffered a puncture wound. The vast majority of those injured, however, suffered scrapes and abrasions from flying debris.
