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Blast at UK's New York consulate
By Mark Egan
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York police are investigating two predawn blasts at the British consulate in midtown Manhattan that shattered some windows but caused no injuries, a spokesman said on Thursday.
"There was a blast at the British consulate," a New York Police Department spokesman told Reuters of the incident that occurred about 4 a.m. local time (9 a.m. British time) as British voters went to the polls in a general election.
"There were some shattered windows and there are no injuries. We are investigating it," the spokesman added.
A second police spokesman said later there was minimal damage to the building, with only a door, window and a nearby car damaged.
Detective Noel Waters said the explosion was caused by "two small improvised explosive devices" in or near a large concrete flower box -- typically used in New York to prevent vehicles from driving into buildings.
Waters said the devices blew out a chunk of concrete, causing minor damage to the upscale office block. The homemade devices were metal "novelty grenades", one in the shape of a pineapple, the other a lemon, both packed with gunpowder, police on the scene said.
New York has remained on high alert for another attack since the September 11, 2001, attacks, when hijacked planes destroyed the World Trade Centre's twin towers.
Asked whether the police had ruled out terrorism in Thursday's incident, Waters said only, "We have not ruled out anything at this point."
Police at the scene said no arrests had been made.
"It sounded like thunder -- two loud bangs," one witness told WINS radio.
Police, including bomb squad specialists, and fire department officials blocked off the area, just a few blocks from the United Nations. The building is located at 845 Third Avenue, between 51st and 52nd streets.
The incident, which briefly upset British financial markets, occurred as polls in Britain were opening for the general election but police said it was not known whether the blast was connected to the consulate.
British voters have been warned that Britain and its interests could be targeted by terrorists during the election campaign. The British Consulate in Istanbul was attacked in November 2003. That attack, and another against a British bank in the same city at the same time, killed the British Consul and 31 others.
Europeans also remember the attacks in Madrid that killed nearly 200 people on March 11, 2004, and which directly affected the outcome of the Spanish general election three days later.
Prime Minister Tony Blair is seeking a third term in office after a short election campaign where he battled public anger against his support of the war in Iraq.
Another high-profile tenant in the building is The Conference Board -- a private firm that compiles several U.S. economic indicators that help gauge the state of the American economy.
By Mark Egan
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York police are investigating two predawn blasts at the British consulate in midtown Manhattan that shattered some windows but caused no injuries, a spokesman said on Thursday.
"There was a blast at the British consulate," a New York Police Department spokesman told Reuters of the incident that occurred about 4 a.m. local time (9 a.m. British time) as British voters went to the polls in a general election.
"There were some shattered windows and there are no injuries. We are investigating it," the spokesman added.
A second police spokesman said later there was minimal damage to the building, with only a door, window and a nearby car damaged.
Detective Noel Waters said the explosion was caused by "two small improvised explosive devices" in or near a large concrete flower box -- typically used in New York to prevent vehicles from driving into buildings.
Waters said the devices blew out a chunk of concrete, causing minor damage to the upscale office block. The homemade devices were metal "novelty grenades", one in the shape of a pineapple, the other a lemon, both packed with gunpowder, police on the scene said.
New York has remained on high alert for another attack since the September 11, 2001, attacks, when hijacked planes destroyed the World Trade Centre's twin towers.
Asked whether the police had ruled out terrorism in Thursday's incident, Waters said only, "We have not ruled out anything at this point."
Police at the scene said no arrests had been made.
"It sounded like thunder -- two loud bangs," one witness told WINS radio.
Police, including bomb squad specialists, and fire department officials blocked off the area, just a few blocks from the United Nations. The building is located at 845 Third Avenue, between 51st and 52nd streets.
The incident, which briefly upset British financial markets, occurred as polls in Britain were opening for the general election but police said it was not known whether the blast was connected to the consulate.
British voters have been warned that Britain and its interests could be targeted by terrorists during the election campaign. The British Consulate in Istanbul was attacked in November 2003. That attack, and another against a British bank in the same city at the same time, killed the British Consul and 31 others.
Europeans also remember the attacks in Madrid that killed nearly 200 people on March 11, 2004, and which directly affected the outcome of the Spanish general election three days later.
Prime Minister Tony Blair is seeking a third term in office after a short election campaign where he battled public anger against his support of the war in Iraq.
Another high-profile tenant in the building is The Conference Board -- a private firm that compiles several U.S. economic indicators that help gauge the state of the American economy.