Module 3
Third Rail
Case Study London, 2005 On the morning of July 7, 2005, Islamic terrorists detonated three bombs in quick succession aboard the London Underground trains across the city. Later, a fourth bomb was detonated on a double-decker bus. Fiftytwo people, plus the four bombers, were killed in the attack, and more than 700 were injured. After the first three bombs went off, a system alert was declared. The London Underground began to shut down operations, ordering trains to continue only to the next station and suspending all services. Nearly an hour after the initial bombings, a fourth bomb was detonated on the top deck of a double-decker bus after it had arrived at a bus station where people who had been evacuated from the Underground were boarding buses. Several people were injured, and surrounding buildings were damaged by debris. Initially, there was confusion as to the origin, method, and timings of the explosions. Authorities believed that the explosions had been caused by a power surge on the Underground power grid; a rapid series of power failures caused by the explosions looked similar to a cascading series of breaker operations that might result from a major power surge. A committee of inquiry afterwards recommended reviewing major incident training for all frontline staff, especially those working on the Underground. It recommended that a common initial rendezvous point be permanently staffed and recommended that stretchers and first aid equipment be available at Underground stations. And in response to the evidence that some firefighters refused to walk on the tracks to reach a bombed train because they had not received confirmation that the electric current had been switched off, the inquiry recommended a review into how emergency workers confirm whether the current is off after a major incident
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n Damaged Underground train after a bombing at Aldgate tube station, London, England in July, 2005.
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