At least 19 dead, 50 injured in explosion at Ariana Grande concert in Manchester

At least nineteen people were killed and about 50 injured after an ‘explosion’ at the Manchester Arena in the United Kingdom on Tuesday morning. According to a statement released by the Greater Manchester Police, the incident is currently being treated as a ‘terrorist incident’.

The management of Manchester Arena, where the Ariana Grande’s concert was held, has released a statement confirming an incident during the show on Monday night. “The incident took place outside the venue outside the venue in a public space,” the management said. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims.” Over one million people visit the arena annually.

Police carried out a controlled explosion on a suspect device several hours after the blast.
A witness who attended the concert said she felt a huge blast as she was leaving the arena, followed by screaming and a rush by thousands of people trying to escape the building. A video posted on Twitter showed fans, many of them young, running from the venue.
“We were making our way out and when we were right by the door there was a massive explosion and everybody was screaming,” concert-goer Catherine Macfarlane told Reuters.

“It was a huge explosion – you could feel it in your chest. It was chaotic. Everybody was running and screaming and just trying to get out.”
A spokesman for Ariana Grande, 23, said the singer was “okay”.

Manchester Arena, the largest indoor arena in Europe, opened in 1995 and is a popular concert and sporting venue.