Durham native witnesses horrific scene in Boston

Thousands of people had packed area streets, some watching friends and family finish the race and some simply out enjoying a sun-filled spring day.

At Stephanie’s on Newbury, a restaurant about a block away from the scene of the first explosion, crowds had packed the outdoor seating area.

Manager Maggie Warren, originally from Durham, said it took just seconds after the explosions for panic to take hold. In the frenzy, people left belongings behind on tables and shattered glasses.

Tuesday morning, as law enforcement officials flooded into the area to investigate a finish line that had turned into a crime scene, there was still food on the tables.

“It was a normal day,” Warren said of the hours prior to the blasts. “We were getting ready to celebrate everyone finishing the marathon. It is usually a really great day around here.”

Warren, who said she moved to Boston a little more than a year ago, said the scene quickly turned gruesome.

“Glasses were breaking, Newbury Street was flooded and panicked. Everyone coming up from Boylston Street was covered in blood,” she said.

One woman injured in the blast was treated on the sidewalk adjacent to the restaurant. 

“Her leg had been blown off and they were trying to stitch her back together,” Warren said.

It wasn’t clear if the woman Warren saw Monday survived, but three people were killed in the attack, including an 8-year-old boy. More than 170 people were wounded, and more than a dozen were in critical condition in Boston hospitals Tuesday morning.

A person briefed on the investigation says the explosives were in 6-liter pressure cookers and placed in black duffel bags.

The person says the explosives were placed on the ground and contained shards of metal, nails and ball bearings

President Barack Obama said Tuesday the deadly Boston Marathon bombings were an act of terrorism but investigators do not know if they were carried out by an international or domestic organization, or perhaps by a "malevolent individual."

In his second public statement in less than 24 hours since the explosions, the president said, "Clearly we are at the beginning of our investigation." He urged anyone with information relating to the events to contact authorities.