Manchester Arena incident - many reported dead

[xsunnysuex]

Sky news now says 22 confirmed dead. Fuck.

 

[Pickman's model]

A few bits and peices from listening to Today this morning. And a bit of rampant speculation.

Death toll still at 19

American intelligence have said it was a suicide bombing, but British police have not confirmed.

Witness saying the explosion was in a foyer area, and everyone was searched going in.

So it sounds like someone waiting outside for people to leave.

It sounds like the entrance above the performs in Manchester Victoria, near where there was a McDonald's. If it was then this is where all the fire exits where kept locked until I reported the fuckers.

I hear the police reporting they'll be locking the stable door by patrolling all over Manchester today.

 

[emanymton]

Sky news now says 22 confirmed dead. Fuck.

BBC still says 19?
Fuck they just updated it to 22.

 

[stethoscope]

Didn't expect to wake up to this news this morning

 

[Pickman's model]

Sky news now says 22 confirmed dead. Fuck.

Much fewer than might have been if dead bomber had had a friend or two: small comfort tho.

 

[Pickman's model]

BBC still says 19?

They just said 22 on r4

 

[crossthebreeze]

Fucking hell, went to bed early last night and haven't turned the tv or radio on yet, so just found out from here. Horrific, awful news. Targetting kids ffs.

 

[stethoscope]

22 dead, 59 injured reported on Beeb News. Fucks sake.

 

[Ms T]

Bomber also dead apparently.

 

[emanymton]

They just said 22 on r4

Yes just heard, was hoping Sky were wrong.

 

[Bernie Gunther]

Shit news.

Seems fairly consistent with the sort of stuff we've been seeing over the last couple of years Europe-wide.

Odds on this being yet another example of why turning Iraq and Syria into Disneyland for wanna be jihadis wasn't such a great idea.

 

[Throbbing Angel]

Fucking hell, went to bed early last night and haven't turned the tv or radio on yet, so just found out from here. Horrific, awful news. Targetting kids ffs.

Same here, ffs. Terrible news.

 

[eatmorecheese]

Slaughtering children. The senseless, murdering cunts.

 

[wiskey]

22 dead, 59 injured reported on Beeb News. Fucks sake.

What an awful thing to wake up to.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Statement by GMP Chief Constable Ian Hopkins:

Manchester Arena: children among 22 dead in suicide attack at Ariana Grande concert – latest updates

This has been the most horrific incident we have had to face in Greater Manchester and one that we all hoped we would never see.

Families and many young people were out to enjoy a concert at the Manchester Arena and have lost their lives. Our thoughts are with those 22 victims that we now know have died, the 59 people who have been injured and their loved ones. We continue to do all we can to support them. They are being treated at eight hospitals across Greater Manchester.

This is a fast-moving investigation and we have significant resources deployed to both the investigation and the visible patrols that people will see across Greater Manchester as they wake up to news of the events last night. This will include armed officers as people would expect. More than 400 officers have been involved in the operation during the night.

To remind you, we were called at 10.33pm to reports of an explosion at the Manchester Arena at the conclusion of an Ariana Grande concert. More than 250 calls came in and emergency services were very quickly on scene. Emergency numbers have been established for anyone who is concerned for loved ones who may not have returned home: 0161 856 9400 or 0161 856 9900.**SEE BELOW**

We have been treating this as a terrorist incident and we believe that while the attack last night was conducted by one man, the priority is to establish whether he was acting alone or as part of a network.

The attacker, I can confirm, died at the arena. We believe the attacker was carrying an improvised explosive device, which he detonated, causing this atrocity.

We would ask people not to speculate on his details or to share names. There is a complex and wide-ranging investigation under way.

Our priority is to work with the national counter-terrorist policing network and UK intelligence services to establish more details about the individual who carried out this attack.
​

EDITED TUES 23/5/17:

NEW casualty bureau number from police. Please use 0800 096 0095 from now on, other numbers no longer in use.

Source: GMP, MEN

 

[danny la rouge]

It's heartbreaking looking at twitter this morning. I'm seeing desperate tweets of people looking for missing children. It's overwhelming.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Full statement from GMP's Hopkins:

 

[Wookey]

Just woke up to this news and I need to go to work in town now, if that's possible. I texted my mum last night after reports of two loud bangs because she can see the arena from her flat, but she hadn't heard anything - last thing she said was "Well, let's hope we wake up in the morning and there's a simple explanation".

I said" Don't worry mum, it'll be balloons or something".

If only.

I'm thinking of all those poor people caught up in it, and I'm worried I could have lost some friends. What a bastard.

 

[Celyn]

Oh heck. Haven't looked at Twitter yet. It was full of those last night and by now anyone still missing someone is going to be even more worried. Well, "worried" is not the word, but ...

And indeed they all seemed to be children or very young teenagers.

 

[rekil]

Lots of freaks posting fake photos and jokes on twitter sadly. It's next to useless - full of fucking awful fucking cunts.

 

[wiskey]

Glastonbury is going to be... Interesting.

 

[Grace Johnson]

It's heartbreaking looking at twitter this morning. I'm seeing desperate tweets of people looking for missing children. It's overwhelming.

Yeah that was brutal. There has also been great posts though, 100s of people offering up there spare rooms and lifts for anyone who needed them. City centre businesses opening there doors to people and coming onto the streets giving people food and water. The taxis stayed on all night from all over the city trying to get people home and taking no payment. That's what I'm trying to focus on now.

 

[wiskey]

Always look for the helpers ... when bad things happen always look for the people helping, because they will be there.

 

[Grace Johnson]

I think I'm going to be scared when sirens start from now on. That's how I knew something horrible had happened. Like I live in Manchester centre I'm used to sirens but they just didn't stop.

 

[Pickman's model]

Slaughtering children. The senseless, murdering cunts.

Sadly nothing senseless about it. This was done to provoke a reaction and as the murder of lee rigby showed there will always be people up for responding.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Lots of freaks posting fake photos and jokes on twitter sadly. It's next to useless - full of fucking awful fucking cunts.

Buzzfeed rundown on some of the false rumours so far:

This Is Some Of The Fake News Circulating About The Manchester Arena Blast

 

[Bernie Gunther]

I hear the police reporting they'll be locking the stable door by patrolling all over Manchester today.

To be fair to them, that's probably a sensible precaution (although there are obviously PR reasons too)

Think about how Brevik used a bomb to get all the cops running to one place then did his shootings in another.

 

[Reiabuzz]

Lots of freaks posting fake photos and jokes on twitter sadly. It's next to useless - full of fucking awful fucking cunts.

This was posted on twitter hours before the attack and picked up by 'civilians' who monitor these nutjobs. Glad the security services also monitor them as closely.

 

[Grace Johnson]

also If anyone's in Manchester and has spare time please try and donate blood over the next day or two esp if you have any O type blood as this is especially important with trauma patients.

This is where I will be going later but there are other places to donate that are listed on the site too.

Manchester Norfolk House Blood Donor Centre

 

[Pickman's model]

To be fair to them, that's probably a sensible precaution (although there are obviously PR reasons too)

Think about how Brevik used a bomb to get all the cops running to one place then did his shootings in another.

This is more 7/7/06 than investigation or precaution. They call it reassurance policing, I call it a ludicrous waste of time and money.