A terrifying video recorded on a car dashcam and posted to Twitter by Joe Gregory shows the moment an explosion was seen and heard outside the Manchester Arena during an Ariana Grande concert. The blast killed 19 people and left 50 wounded, the Greater Manchester Police said.
You can watch the video above. The video shows the outside of the arena. A bright light can be seen in the left corner of the screen followed by a bang. Gregory posted on Twitter that he was waiting outside the arena waiting to pick up his girlfriend and her sister.
Another video showed the moment of the blast inside the arena:
“This is currently being treated as a terrorist incident until police know otherwise,” the police department said in a statement. Witnesses said a loud explosion was followed by screams, panic and a stamped of people trying to leave the crowded building, which is one of the largest indoor arenas in the world.
Ariana Grande was not among those injured, her representatives said. The incident reported about 10:30 p.m. local time, after Grande left the stage and houselights came on, while people were beginning to exit the arena. About 20,000 people were in attendance at the sold-out show, including many teenagers and young people who came to see the pop star perform.
The North West Counter Terrorism Unit is treating the incident as a possible terrorist incident and is investigating, the BBC reports.
(Twitter/@JoeAaronGregory)
The explosion occurred in the foyer area of the arena, British Transport Police told The Sun. Sources told the newspaper the explosion was a “nail bomb attack,” but police have not confirmed that detail.
NHS sources are saying the explosion at Manchester Arena was a nail bomb attack. Still unconfirmed.
NBC News, meanwhile, is reporting that it was an attack carried out by a suicide bomber wearing a backpack bomb. NBC News’ Pete Williams, citing U.S. sources, reports there is “increasing confidence” it was a terror attack, while forensic evidence points to a bomb in a backpack.
NBC News: UK authorities suspect a possible suicide bomber responsible for incident at Ariana Grande concert in Manchester sources say.
Lauren Valentine Barrow, a local singer and concert booking agent, posted on Facebook, “I have heard from quite a few people that know staff from the arena saying that there were suicide bombers at the foyer entrance near McDonald’s. It’s not confirmed of course but all the things I am hearing are not good. I hope you are all safe.”
“There were just a loud bang and a flash and everyone tried to scramble out. An alarm came on telling everyone to stay calm but leave as quickly as possible,” Jade Baynes, 18, of Hull, told The Guardian. Another witness, Oliver Jones, also gave a description to The Guardian of what he witnessed:
I was in the toilet and heard a loud bang just after the concert had finished and people had started to leave. The bang echoed around the foyer of the arena and people started to run. I seen people running and screaming towards one direction and then many were turning around to run back the other way. Security was running out as well as the fans and concert goers. Reports of blood and people injured. In so much shock and panic. You see this on the news all the time and never expect it to happen to you. I just had to run and make sure me and my sister were safe.
Another witness told the BBC she saw some people being injured in the stampede as people tried to exit after the blast.
“As we turned around the corner there was an horrific stampede of people coming down the steps, people falling on floor,” she told the news station. “I grabbed my daughter and we just ran. There were people being crushed on the floor.”
Read more about the incident at the link below:
