Bombings of Paddington and Victoria stations

Last updated

Bombings of Paddington and Victoria stations
Part of The Troubles
Inside Victoria Railway Station SW1 - geograph.org.uk - 1312488.jpg
Inside London Victoria railway station
Location London Victoria station, London Paddington station, London, England
Date18 February 1991
Paddington station 4:20am
Victoria station 7:40am GMT (GMT)
Target British Rail stations
Attack type
 Time bomb
Deaths1
Injured38
Perpetrator Provisional Irish Republican Army

On 18 February 1991 two Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) bombs exploded at London mainline stations, one at Victoria station and the other at Paddington station, killing one person and injuring 38 other people at Victoria station. [1] It was the IRA's second major attack in London in February 1991 after the Downing Street mortar attack eleven days earlier which was an attempt to assassinate the British War cabinet and the British prime minister John Major. [2] It was also the first IRA attack against a civilian target in England since the 1983 Harrods bombing, marking a strategic change in their bombing campaign in England. [3]

Contents

Background

The IRA had stepped up their campaign against British military, economic and transport targets outside of Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. On 30 July 1990 the IRA detonated a large bomb at the London Stock Exchange causing massive damage but no injuries. [4] Ten days later they killed Conservative MP Ian Gow. [4]

Previous bombings of the stations

On 26 February 1884, at Victoria station, an explosion occurred in the cloakroom of the Brighton side injuring seven staff members, as part of the Fenian dynamite campaign. [5]

On 26 July 1939 bombs exploded in the cloakroom of Victoria stations. At Victoria, five people, cloakroom attendants and porters, were wounded and the station clock was shattered. [6]

On 8 September 1973, an IRA bomb exploded at the ticket office in Victoria station, injuring five people. [7]

The bombings

The Paddington station bomb went off at 4:20am. There were no deaths or injuries, but the roof was badly damaged. The bomb at Paddington was designed to establish credibility for a subsequent IRA call warning that bombs would explode at all 11 mainline stations in London during the morning rush hour. The IRA intended that the security services would take the warning seriously and not treat it as a hoax. Given that an evacuation of this magnitude was unprecedented, the police hesitated before halting all incoming trains and evacuating every station, which would have put thousands of people on the streets, which may have been the location of secondary devices. [8]

Sometime before 7:00am, a caller with an Irish accent said: "We are the Irish Republican Army. Bombs to go off in all mainline stations in 45 minutes." [9] Before ordering a massive evacuation, the authorities tried to search the stations. As a result The Victoria station bomb, which was hidden in a rubbish bin inside the station, went off at 7:40am whilst passengers were still present on crowded platforms. [10] Despite a 45-minute warning and the Paddington bomb three hours before, which was much smaller than that at Victoria, the security services were slow to act. The bomb killed one person instantly and 38 others were injured by flying glass and other debris. [11] This was the worst attack suffered by civilians in England at the hands of the IRA since the 1983 Harrods bombing, which killed three policemen, three civilians and injured 50 people. [12] Fearing further casualties, for the first time in history, all London's rail terminals were closed, disrupting the journeys of almost half a million commuters and bringing chaos to London, which was the IRA's intended goal. [13] There was also a hoax call made to Heathrow, causing the airport's closure. [14]

That night the IRA claimed responsibility for the bombings but blamed the British police for the casualties. A statement from the IRA GHQ said: "The cynical decision of senior security personnel not to evacuate railway stations named in secondary warnings, even three hours after the warning device had exploded at Paddington in the early hours of this morning was directly responsible for the casualties at Victoria." The statement went on, "All future warnings should be acted upon." [15]

Police defended the decision not to close all stations after receiving warning that bombs had been planted. Commander George Churchill-Coleman, head of Scotland Yard's anti-terrorist squad, said that dozens of hoax calls were received every day. "It is very easy with hindsight to be critical." [16] Churchill-Coleman also said that the bomb was "quite deliberately intended to maim and kill." [17]

Aftermath

The Home Secretary, Kenneth Baker, visited Victoria station after the bomb and said "The concourse of Victoria is covered in blood. This is the act of murderous criminals." The Queen, and other officials, also sent their condolences to the victims. [14]

This bombing would mark the IRA's shift to targeting civilian areas [18] following the July 1990 London Stock Exchange bombing - something they had not done since the 1983 Harrods bombing. It was also the first IRA attack on the London transport system since 1976. [19] The IRA kept bombing targets in England for the remainder of the year - dozens of bombs went off in the run up to Christmas 1991. [20]

Design of Public Transportation Infrastructure and Operations

The attack emphasized the need for increased public transportation security. Security measures for surface transportation cannot replicate those in place for aviation security: In addition to cost, other considerations include the volume of passengers, configuration and access points and concerns that enhanced security could increase vulnerability to attack e.g. increased crowding or queuing, thus "net security benefit" is the focus. [21]

Following the attack, transportation designers and planners took pragmatic steps and adapted the way that stations and rolling stock were designed and managed in order to discourage attacks, mitigate the effects of an attack, and facilitate rapid recovery of service post-attack. [22]

See also

Further reading

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1973 Old Bailey bombing</span> Provisional IRA attack in London, England

The 1973 Old Bailey bombing was a car bomb attack carried out by the Provisional IRA (IRA) which took place outside the Old Bailey Courthouse on 8 March 1973. The attack was carried out by an 11-person active service unit (ASU) from the Provisional IRA Belfast Brigade. The unit also exploded a second bomb which went off outside the Ministry of Agriculture near Whitehall in London at around the same time the bomb at the Old Bailey went off.

The Derry Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) operated in the city of Derry, Northern Ireland, and its surroundings during the Troubles. The Derry Brigade was one of the most active groups in the IRA.

On Tuesday evening 18 November 1975 an Irish Republican Army (IRA) unit nicknamed the Balcombe Street Gang, without warning, threw a bomb into Walton's Restaurant in Walton Street, Knightsbridge, London, killing two people and injuring almost two dozen others.

The 1987 Rheindahlen bombing was a car bomb attack on 23 March 1987 at JHQ Rheindahlen military barracks, the British Army headquarters in West Germany, injuring thirty-one. The large 300 lb (140 kg) car bomb exploded near the visitors officers' mess of the barracks. The Provisional IRA later stated it had carried out the bombing. It was the second bombing in Rheindahlen, the first being in 1973, and the start of the IRA's campaign on mainland Europe from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. Although British soldiers were targeted, most of the injured were actually German officers and their wives.

The 1994 Heathrow mortar attacks were a series of homemade mortar bomb attacks targeted at Heathrow Airport carried out by the Provisional IRA. Over a five-day period, Heathrow was targeted three times by the IRA, which fired 12 mortar rounds. Heathrow was a symbolic target due to its importance to the United Kingdom's economy, and much disruption was caused when areas of the airport were closed over the period due to the IRA attacks. The gravity of the incident was heightened by the fact that Queen Elizabeth II was being flown back to Heathrow by the RAF on 10 March.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1975 Piccadilly bombing</span> Bomb attack near Green Park Underground station, London

On Thursday 9 October 1975, a bomb attack just outside Green Park Underground station in the City of Westminster, London, left one man dead and injured 20 others. The attack was carried out by volunteers from the Provisional IRA's Balcombe Street Gang. The attack occurred during a period of heightened activity by the IRA in England and in particular London and surrounding areas, since the Caterham Arms pub bombing two months earlier in August 1975.

The Balcombe Street Gang was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) active service unit (ASU) who carried out a bombing campaign in southern England in the mid-1970s. The majority of their attacks and attempted attacks took place in London and the rest in Surrey, Hampshire and Wiltshire. Between October 1974 and December 1975 they carried out approximately 40 bomb and gun attacks in and around London, sometimes attacking the same targets twice. The unit would sometimes carry out two or more attacks in one day; on 27 January 1975 they placed seven time bombs in London.

On 17 June 1974 the Provisional IRA bombed the British Houses of Parliament causing extensive damage and injuring eleven people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1992 London Bridge bombing</span> Provisional IRA attack in London

On Friday 28 February 1992, the Provisional IRA (IRA) exploded a bomb inside London Bridge station during the morning rush hour, causing extensive damage and wounding 29 people. It was one of many bombings carried out by one of the IRA's London active service units. It occurred just over a year after a bomb at Victoria station.

On 25 and 27 November 1974 the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) placed several bombs in pillar boxes and one in a hedge behind a pillar box. This was a new tactic used by the IRA in England, although a similar tactic had been used in Northern Ireland during The Troubles several times previously. 40 people were wounded from five explosions in several districts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Lodge Six shooting</span> 1973 mass shooting in Belfast

In the late hours of 3 February and the early hours of 4 February 1973, six men, all of whom were Catholics, were shot and killed in the New Lodge area of north Belfast:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombings of King's Cross and Euston stations</span> 1973 IRA attacks in London, England

The King's Cross station and Euston station bombings were two bombing attacks on 10 September 1973 by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) that targeted two mainline railway stations in central London. The blasts wounded 13 civilians, some of whom were seriously injured, and also caused large-scale but superficial damage. This was a second wave of bombing attacks launched by the IRA in England in 1973 after the Old Bailey car bombing earlier in the year which had killed one and injured around 200 civilians.

Roy Walsh is a former Provisional IRA volunteer. He was convicted for his part in the IRA's 1973 Old Bailey bombing which injured over 200 people and one person died from a heart attack due to the bombing.

The following is a timeline of actions during The Troubles which took place in the Republic of Ireland between 1969 and 1998. It includes Ulster Volunteer Force bombings such as the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in May 1974, and other Loyalist bombings carried out in the 1970s, 80s & 90s, the last of which was in 1997. These attacks killed dozens of people and injured hundreds more. Also actions carried out by Irish Republicans including bombings, prison escapes, kidnappings, and gun battles between the Gardaí (police) and the Irish Defence Forces against Republican gunmen from the Irish National Liberation Army, the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and a socialist-revolutionary group, Saor Éire. These attacks killed a number of civilians, police, soldiers, and Republican paramilitaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chelsea Barracks bombing</span> 1981 IRA attack in London, England

The Chelsea Barracks bombing was an attack carried out by a London-based Active Service Unit (ASU) of the Provisional IRA on 10 October 1981, using a remote-controlled nail bomb. The bomb targeted a bus carrying British Army soldiers just outside Chelsea Barracks. The blast killed two civilians and injured 40 people, among them 23 soldiers.

This is a timeline of the events and actions during the Troubles that were carried out in Great Britain, the vast majority of which were carried out by Irish Republican paramilitaries mainly the Provisional IRA were by far the most active but both the Official IRA and the Irish National Liberation Army, also carried out a number of attacks, which included bombings and shootings. Ulster Loyalist paramilitary groups also carried out a small number of violent actions.

The Red Lion Pub bombing was a bomb attack on 2 November 1971 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Planted by the Provisional IRA, it exploded in the Red Lion pub on Ormeau Road, killing three people and injuring about 30 others. The IRA members had given customers less than ten seconds to flee the building. Police said the target was the neighbouring Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) station.

References

  1. ↑ Sutton, Malcolm. "CAIN: Sutton Index of Deaths". cain.ulst.ac.uk.
  2. ↑ Melaugh, Dr Martin. "CAIN: Chronology of the Conflict 1991". cain.ulst.ac.uk.
  3. ↑ Schmidt, William E. (19 February 1991). "2 Rail Terminals in Central London Hit by I.r.a. Bombs". The New York Times.
  4. 1 2 Melaugh, Dr Martin. "CAIN: Chronology of the Conflict 1990". cain.ulst.ac.uk.
  5. ↑ "Dynamite outrage at Victoria Station". The Times. London. 27 February 1884. p. 10.
  6. ↑ Graham, John (7 September 1973). "Then and now: the IRA's 1939 campaign in England". The Financial Times– via The Canberra Times p. 2.
  7. ↑ "UK BOMB BLAST: SYND 8-9-73 BOMB BLAST AT VICTORIA STATION". AP Archive. AP Television. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  8. ↑ Jenkins, B.M., Handbook of Terrorism Prevention and Preparedness. https://www.icct.nl/sites/default/files/2023-01/Chapter-26-Handbook-.pdf p801
  9. ↑ Davies, Karin (18 February 1991). "One killed, 40 wounded in suspected IRA attack". UPI.
  10. ↑ Jenkins, B.M., Handbook of Terrorism Prevention and Preparedness. https://www.icct.nl/sites/default/files/2023-01/Chapter-26-Handbook-.pdf p801
  11. ↑ Campbell, Duncan; Correspondent, Crime (19 February 1991). "Man killed, 38 hurt, as IRA switches target to stations". The Guardian.
  12. ↑ Sutton, Malcolm. "CAIN: Sutton Index of Deaths". cain.ulst.ac.uk.
  13. ↑ Jenkins, Brian Michael and Larry N. Gersten, Protecting Surface Transportation Systems and Patrons from Terrorist Activities, San Jose, CA: Mineta Transportation Institute, 2001
  14. 1 2 "Man killed, 38 hurt, as IRA switches target to stations". TheGuardian.com . 19 February 1991.
  15. ↑ "IRA bombs kill one, disrupt London". 19 February 1991.
  16. ↑ Times, William E. Schmidt, Special to the New York (19 February 1991). "2 RAIL TERMINALS IN CENTRAL LONDON HIT BY I.R.A. BOMBS". The New York Times.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. ↑ "Blast at London's Victoria Station Kills 1, Injures 37". Deseret News . 18 February 1991.
  18. ↑ IRA, The Bombs and the Bullets: A History of Deadly Ingenuity by A. R. Oppenheimer
  19. ↑ IRA, The Bombs and the Bullets: A History of Deadly Ingenuity by A. R. Oppenheimer
  20. ↑ Melaugh, Dr Martin. "CAIN: Chronology of the Conflict 1991". cain.ulst.ac.uk.
  21. ↑ Jenkins, B.M., Handbook of Terrorism Prevention and Preparedness. https://www.icct.nl/sites/default/files/2023-01/Chapter-26-Handbook-.pdf p806-7
  22. ↑ Cherry, C. Loukaitou-Sideris, A. and Wahchs, M., Subway Station Design and Management: Lessons from Case Studies of Contemporary Terrorist Incidents (2006) https://www.jstor.org/stable/43030821

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.