MOSCOW TRAIN EXPLOSION KILLS AT LEAST 30

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Moscow Train Explosion Kills at Least 30

MOSCOW - An explosion reportedly caused by a suicide bomber ripped through a subway car in Moscow during rush hour Friday morning, killing at least 30 people in what authorities were investigating as an act of terrorism.

A severe fire broke out in the underground train, sending clouds of smoke through the tunnel, and passengers were being evacuated from Avtozavodskaya station, about 300 yards from the site of the explosion, ministry spokesman Viktor Beltsov said.

About 30 people were killed after an explosion in the second wagon of the train as it traveled northwest on one of Moscow's deepest metro lines to the Paveletskaya station.

Authorities are investigating the explosion as an act of terrorism, said Kirill Mazurin, spokesman for the Moscow police. He said the death toll could be as high as 30. The Interfax news agency, citing police sources, reported that the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber.

The Emergency Situations Ministry said more than 30 people were wounded, although Russian news reports put the number of injured as high as 150.

Ambulances crowded the street outside the metro station entrance and paramedics, carrying stretchers or equipment in backpacks, rushed down the steps.

Bystanders stood in snow watching emergency workers treat the wounded outside the station. In one ambulance, medics bandaged the hand of a woman whose face was smeared with blood. In another, a boy appeared uninjured but his face was blackened with soot.

Police immediately barricaded the two metro stations and stopped all traffic between the stations. Dozens of buses were rerouted to deal with the evacuated passengers, clogging up the already busy streets of the Russian capital.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (news - web sites) was informed.

More than 700 people had been evacuated, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported, quoting metro staff. Most Russians are dependent on public transportation, and the spacious train wagons are usually packed tight during rush hour traffic.

The Interfax and ITAR-Tass news agencies said the train wagon was badly damaged.

The Russian capital has been on alert for terrorist attacks following a series of suicide bombings that officials have blamed on Chechen rebels.

In December, a female suicide bomber blew herself up outside the National Hotel across from Moscow's Red Square, killing at least five others. Two suicide bombers blew themselves up at a Moscow rock concert in July, killing themselves and 14 other people. That was followed five days later by an aborted suicide bomb attack at a central Moscow restaurant that killed the sapper trying to defuse the bomb. The suspected attacker was arrested and is awaiting trial.

In August 2000, a bomb exploded at a crowded pedestrian underpass filled with kiosks at Pushkin Square, a popular meeting place located near a metro line. The attack was initially blamed on Chechen rebels, but some police later said that a turf battle between rival businessmen or criminal gangs could have been the motive.

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