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2010-02-03 04:17:37 - Terror Attack - Australia EDIS CODE: VW-20100203-24771-AUS
Date & Time: 2010-02-03 04:17:37 [UTC]
Area: Australia, State of Northern Territory, TIO (Territory Insurance Office), Darwin Number of Injured person(s): 13
Damage level: Moderate (Level 2)
Not confirmed information! Description: A man is in custody after at least 13 people were injured in what police say was a bomb attack on an insurance office building in Darwin's CBD this morning. Police say a man wheeled a shopping trolley containing an explosive device through the front door of the TIO (Territory Insurance Office) premises in Cavenagh Street at about 11am. NT Police Commander Rob Kendrick says there was a "significant" explosion but he does not believe any of the injuries are life-threatening. The injured people have been taken to the Royal Darwin Hospital. They include a policeman suffering from smoke inhalation. Police say a man surrendered to them after the explosion and he is being treated as a person of interest. The TIO office is inside Darwin's CBD Woolworths complex. The bomb squad is on the scene. The entire shopping complex which sits between Smith and Cavenagh Streets is being evacuated as are neighbouring properties. A witness who was in the car park said his relative saw the events take place. "My son-in-law came out, he turned around and saw this tall skinny guy walk in with a trolley full of fuel and firecrackers and set it off. "He said he stood there for a minute and watched it catch fire and then took off." Witness Charmaine Burton was in a meeting nearby when the apparent attack happened. She told the ABC that she heard "15 to 20 repetitive (bangs) almost like gunshots". She said the smoke inside the TIO office was "completely black" and there was a strong smell of diesel or kerosene. She described how people inside the building had to follow each others voices to safety because they were unable to see because of the smoke, with one man calling out "if you can hear me follow my voice". TIO chief executive Richard Harding says the insurance office did not receive any threats before the explosion. "At this stage it appears to be a random event, a person has walked into the branch and ignited some petrol, other than that we have no details as to what has caused the explosion," he said. Five ambulance vehicles are on the scene and Darwin hospital's burns trauma unit is on standby. Louisa Ainsworth was shopping when she heard the explosion. "I was shopping at Woolworths and then just started hearing all this crashing and banging, sort of like a roof was collapsing and sort of like a little explosion," she said. "We just went outside and saw all the smoke and people screaming and running out of TIO."
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