London Olympic jubilation turns to horror
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-07-07 21:26

The day after London celebrated winning the 2012 Olympics, the city was rocked on Thursday by a series of explosions that killed at least two people and injured scores more.

The jubilant scenes in Trafalgar Square, where thousands of revelers danced and sang at the news of the International Olympic Committee's vote, contrasted with the looks of horror on the faces of the casualties and witnesses after at least six explosions ripped through underground stations and buses during the morning rush hour.

While early details from police and ambulance services said there had been two fatalities and 90 injuries at an underground station, the casualty numbers were almost certain to rise considerably.

One day earlier, London was celebrating staging its first Olympics since 1948, having held off the challenges of Paris, Madrid, New York and Moscow at an IOC vote in Singapore. Led by two-time Olympic gold medalist Sebastian Coe, London beat long-time favorite Paris.

When Londoners woke on Thursday to start the seven years of planning and construction, they were instead hit by the news of explosions in central London. The euphoric mood changed completely as people came to terms with the horror of the blasts and London Mayor Ken Livingstone, who was in Singapore for the IOC vote, was hurrying home.

The explosions occurred while leaders of the G-8 summit involving President Bush, Prime Minister Tony Blair and six other leaders was about to begin in Scotland. Blair said he would leave the G-8 summit at Gleneagles on Thursday to return to London.

Sports events scheduled in London for Thursday were called off.