President Dmitri Medvedev (1965- ) inspecting a hospital where the injured were sent…
Mayor Sergei Sobyanin (1958 – ) of Moscow visiting a hospital with the President…
PM Vladimir Putin (1952- ) visiting the injured…
Volunteer drivers offering free rides to Moscow after the bomb explosion…
Security was tightened at the Moscow Metro as well…
On Tuesday, the Moscow City government declared 26 January as a Day of Mourning to commemorate the victims of the terrorist attack at Domodedovo Airport, Gulnara Penkova, a spokesman for Mayor Sobyanin, told RIA-Novosti. The explosion in the international terminal at Domodedovo occurred at 16.32 MSK (13.32 UTC 08.32 EST 05.32 PST) on 24 January. According to preliminary data, an explosive device, packed with sharp metal fragments, with explosive power equivalent to seven kilogrammes (15.4 pounds) of TNT, went off in the international arrivals area. According to the most recent reports, 35 people were killed and more than 100 hospitalised. “In memory of the victims of the terrorist attack, which occurred 24 January at Domodedovo Airport, Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin decided to declare 26 January 2011 as a Day of Mourning in Moscow”, Ms Penkova said. In connection with the tragedy, on 25 January, Moscow city authorities cancelled the massive student celebrations dedicated to St Tatiana Day. Russian TV channels will not broadcast light entertainment on the day of mourning. Besides this, on the day of mourning, there won’t be ads or light entertainment programmes broadcast on the radio. Radio stations that are part of RTR-Vesti FM, Radio Russia, and Mayak especially will try to forgo comedy, quizzes, and raffles. Music broadcast on this day will be themed in accordance with the declared day of mourning. In addition, the Moscow government tightened security at major transportation hubs in the city.
25 January 2011
RIA-Novosti
All of Europe sympathised with Russia in connection with the events at Domodedovo Airport in Moscow…
European politicians described the incident as a cowardly and barbaric act of terrorism and invited that the Russian authorities to ask for assistance from their countries in the investigation of the explosion, if necessary. One of the first react to the attack was Britain, whose nationals were amongst those killed and injured. British Prime Minister David Cameron personally rang up President Medvedev and assured him that the British people stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Russia in the face of such a tragedy. A little while before the explosion at Domodedovo, two flights from the UK landed almost simultaneously… the first was a British Airways airliner that arrived about 40 minutes before the explosion, with 165 passengers on board. The second flight was from budget British airline BMI, carrying 97 people from London. Passengers from these aircraft went into the airport terminal literally minutes before the explosion. Both planes carried dozens of Brits and Russians. The explosion occurred when they passed through passport control and the luggage carousel.
BBC interviewed one of the passengers, an Englishman, Mark Green, who came in on the British Airways flight, who said, “I was among the first to pick up my suitcase on the luggage carousel, and I had even managed to leave the building when I heard a very loud explosion. Snow fell off the roof of the airport like an avalanche, and, 30 seconds later, bloodied people began to run out of the building in shock”, Mr Greene said. He then said that he gave his water bottle to a man, who used the water to wash blood and black soot from his face. A British businessman named Jeremy was in the queue at passport control as the explosion occurred. “When the explosion went off, it shook the ceiling, and all kinds of dirt and dust came down, and there was smoke in the front of the room near the luggage carousel. There was dust all over the place. I thought, at first, ‘I’ve got to take off my specs and wipe them off’… but then I remembered… ‘I don’t wear specs’”, the Englishman said.
Even before it became known that British nationals were amongst the victims of the terrorist attack, Prime Minister David Cameron rang up President Medvedev and offered his condolences to the families of those killed and injured in this terrible terrorist attack. “The British people stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Russia in the face of such a tragedy. We must never allow the terrorists to win”, Mr Cameron said. He assured Dmitri Anatolyevich that Britain was ready to provide full support for the investigation of the attack. “The Russian authorities may apply to us for any assistance that they need in the investigation”, the British prime minister promised. A statement from British Foreign Minister William Hague backed up Mr Cameron’s words, reporting that, immediately after the news of the explosion, staffers from the British Embassy went to Domodedovo to provide consular assistance to Britons, and that British diplomats were in constant and close contact with the Russian government. The news of the murderous terrorist strike in Domodedovo deeply shocked Mr Hague. English-speaking bloggers aired similar sentiments. “Russians, please accept our condolences. Today, the world mourns with you”, “gondorplace” wrote on the website of the newspaper The Independent. On the same site, from “originaleskimo”, “No one, regardless of religion or belief, has a right to take a human life”.
Chris Yates, a British expert on aviation security, meeting with his Russian colleagues, said, “The explosion was the handiwork of a suicide bomber, it was an infernal contraption filled with iron bolts, they scattered throughout the arrivals hall”. One of his colleagues, Philip Baum, an expert on security for air transportation, believed that a terrorist attack at an airport in the area near the luggage carousel was inevitable; most airport security forces don’t really expect bombs in this area. “We give so much attention to body searches of passengers and inspection of their luggage before they board their flight that the remaining space at the airport is becoming less secure”. The same thing that happened at Domodedovo could happen in any other airport in the world, according to internet users who expressed their opinions on British newspaper websites. “The arrivals hall is always poorly protected. It’s full of racks and there’s the check-in stands. Anyone can join a queue of passengers in order to set off an explosion. I’ll predict that, soon, all of us will be checked when we enter the airport and we’ll be asked to go through a metal detector”, according to “Mitchell_n_beard” on the website of the newspaper The Independent.
25 January 2011
Voice of Russia World Service
President Dmitri Medvedev (1965- ) visits those in hospital after the Domodedovo attack… Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin (1958- ) is visible to the left rear.
More than 100 people were injured in the terrorist attack at Domodedovo Airport; about 40 are in serious condition…
Immediately after the tragedy, ambulances quickly took dozens of people to the leading medical centres in Moscow. Once there, doctors operated on the most seriously injured directly, and gave first aid to people with lesser injuries. As reported today, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin of Moscow said that the city’s hospitals had sufficient drug supplies and the necessary equipment for treatment available in sufficient quantities. Today, many Muscovites came to blood banks to donate blood for those injured. President Dmitri Medvedev went to visit those in hospital at the Sklifosovsky Emergency Medical Institute, where 11 of the injured (one of them in very serious condition) are receiving treatment.
Anzor Khubutiya, the director of the Institute, told us, “One mostly sees injuries to the lower limbs, thorax, and head. Almost all patients suffer from concussion to some extent or other. We performed seven emergency operations; all of the patients are still alive. However, one patient is in critical condition, but we continue to fight for his life. I hope that that we can pull him through. Of the four other patients we received, one only had minor injuries, and we admitted three others to hospital. Today, we’re giving them everything that we have, including medicines from our reserve stocks”.
Today, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited the Vishnevsky Surgical Institute. People with abdominal injuries and shrapnel wounds were taken here. Vladimir Vladimirovich wished them a speedy recovery. Dmitri Peskov, the Press Secretary to V V Putin, gave an interview to VOR, saying, “The government is implementing actions aimed at minimising the consequences of the tragedy. Now, the primary task facing the government is to ensure that all the victims of the terrorist attack receive the necessary medical and financial assistance. Today, Prime Minister Putin signed a decree providing for financial assistance for family members of victims, granting them the compensation that the law allows in such cases. In addition, the Mayor of Moscow and the Governor of Moscow Oblast are allocating significant funds to the victims. The amount of compensation varies, depending on the severity of injuries. In addition, today, the Prime Minister visited one of the city hospitals to ensure that the victims are getting everything that they require. Mr Putin was pleased with what he saw”.
Meanwhile, there’s more information available about the foreign nationals injured in the terrorist attack. Sophia Malyavina, a spokesman for the Health Ministry, said, “A total of thirteen [foreigners] were hospitalised. According to preliminary data, those hospitalised include one each from Germany, Italy, France, Moldova, Slovenia, Serbia, and Uzbekistan. Two were from Nigeria and four were from Tajikistan. Their conditions range from stable to critical”. Before releasing information about foreign nationals killed in the attack, Ms Malyavina said that we must first contact their relatives so that they can come to identify them definitively. There shall be a simplified procedure for visas for family members, and there are reserved rooms in one of the Moscow hotels for them. Teams of psychologists shall work with the families of the victims. According to the most recent data, the attack killed 35 people.
25 January 2011
Voice of Russia World Service
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