Canadian police say two men detonated an improvised explosive device inside the Bombay Bhel restaurant
Mississauga explosion: more than a dozen injured in Canada restaurant blast
More than a dozen people have been injured after an improvised explosive device was detonated inside a restaurant in Mississauga, a Canadian city neighbouring Toronto.
About 15 people were taken to hospital after the blast at the Bombay Bhel restaurant. Three people had critical injuries, the Peel Regional Paramedic Service said in a Tweet.
Peel Regional Police said on Twitter that two men in their mid 20s had detonated an improvised explosive device inside the restaurant. The men fled the scene shortly after the incident, the statement said.
Play Video 0:42 Suspects sought after Canada restaurant explosion – video
The police posted a photograph on Twitter showing two people with dark zip-up hoodies walking into an establishment with one of them appearing to be carrying something.
Roads in the area were closed and a large police presence was at the scene, with heavily armed tactical officers arriving as part of the large emergency response, local media reported.
The blast occurred just after 10:30pm, media reported. Mississauga, Canada’s sixth-largest city, with a population of 700,000, lies about 20 miles (32 km) west of Toronto.
Andre Larrivee, who lives nearby, told CTV he was watching television when he heard a “really loud” explosion.
The blast comes a month after a driver plowed his white Ryder rental van into a lunch-hour crowd in Toronto, killing 10 people and injuring 15.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The plaza where the attack took place was cordoned off as paramedics helped the injured
A homemade bomb has exploded at a restaurant in Mississauga, Canada's sixth largest city, injuring 15 people.
Police said two suspects entered the Bombay Bhel restaurant in the Ontario city late on Thursday and detonated the improvised explosive device.
Ambulance services said that three of the 15 people taken to hospital had "critical blast injuries".
Two male suspects fled the scene immediately after the explosion in the city, which is near Toronto.
Peel Regional Police said they had received a call about the incident at 22:32 local time (02:32 GMT).
Skip Twitter post by @PeelPoliceMedia 2 suspects attended the scene, detonated an Improvised Explosive Device within the restaurant. Several injured were taken to local hospital and 3 in critical condition were taken to a Toronto Trauma Centre. pic.twitter.com/yzCT59UVN6 — Peel Regional Police (@PeelPoliceMedia) May 25, 2018 Report
Police issued CCTV footage of the two suspects, describing them both as men around 5ft 10 in height with light or fair skin, and appealing for help identifying them.
One man was described as "stocky" and in his mid-20s, while the other was of thin build. Both wore blue jeans and dark hoodies, and had covered their faces.
The motive for the attack is unknown.
Canadian broadcaster CBC reported a heavy police presence, complete with "tactical teams" - and said an officer on the scene could not say whether there was a further threat to public safety.
Mississauga, a large city on the shore of Lake Ontario, borders the larger city of Toronto and is home to Toronto Pearson International Airport.
A bomb has exploded at a suburban Indian restaurant in the Canadian city of Mississauga, injuring more than a dozen people.
Two men entered the Bombay Bhel restaurant in the city, near Toronto, and detonated the improvised explosive device, police said.
The pair fled the scene late on Thursday and a manhunt is under way. The motive for the attack is unknown and there was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Paramedics took 15 people to hospital. Three of those hurt had what were described as "critical blast injuries".
Police posted a photograph on Twitter showing two suspects with dark zip-up hoodies walking into the restaurant moments before the bomb went off. One of them was carrying an unidentified object.
Police say an improvised explosive device is responsible for an explosion at a Mississauga restaurant that injured 15 people, including three who paramedics say suffered "critical blast injuries."
Police say two males detonated the device inside the restaurant and are now searching for the pair, who fled the scene immediately after the blast.
Peel Paramedics took 15 patients to hospital after the blast. (Tony Smyth/CBC)
They're describing one suspect as male, 5'10" to 6' with a stocky build, in his mid-20s. He is believed to have been wearing dark blue jeans, a dark zip-up hoodie pulled over his head, a baseball cap with a light grey peak, with his face covered with black cloth.
The second is a male around 5'9 to 5'10" with fair skin, a thin build, faded blue jeans, a dark hoodie pulled over his head along with a grey T-shirt and dark skate shoes.
Tactical teams outside restaurant
Peel paramedics say they were called to the scene of Bombay Bhel in the area of Hurontario Street and Eglinton Avenue East around 10:30 p.m. ET.
Tactical teams could be seen outside the restaurant as patients were loaded into ambulances. Const. Irina Yashnik said they were there as a part of a "multi-unit" response but would not say if there is any threat to public safety.
Three people are in critical condition, while the remaining 12 have minor injuries. (Peel Regional Police/Twitter)
Yashnik could not say where in the building the blast originated or how many people were inside at the time.
The restaurant was evacuated and the plaza is expected to be sealed off for investigation until at least morning.
Within hours, police had tweeted photos of the suspects.
'It was really loud'
Peel Region paramedic Joe Korstanje said three people suffered critical injuries.
"We transported three of them to trauma centres in what I would say is critical condition just from blast injuries," he said.
Explosion: Multiple people injured following reports of an explosion at Bambay Bhel Restaurant 5035 Hurontario St near Eglinton in Mississauga. pic.twitter.com/1Tb9ODag88 —@LateNightCam @Peel_Paramedics on scene with multiple patients at an explosion in Mississauga —@Peel_Paramedics
Korstanje said the remaining 12 victims suffered what he described as minor and superficial injuries.
Rafael Conceicao, a student from Sao Paulo, Brazil, was on the patio of a restaurant close to Bombay Bhel when he heard the explosion, and rushed to help.
"Glass was broken in the street. There was a child's birthday party. Everything was destroyed. Lots of blood in the floor. Many people were screaming. They were trying to run out from the restaurant. There was a guy with glass inside his eyes. Many people were bleeding so much."
Andre Larrivee, who lives in a nearby condo, says he was watching television and heard a loud explosion.
Emergency responders were called to the scene around 10:30 p.m. Thursday. (Tony Smyth/CBC)
"It was really loud," he said, comparing the noise to an electric generator that had exploded at a nearby construction site recently.
Other people who were shopping in neighbouring stores — and waiting for their vehicles to be released from behind the police tape — also reported hearing a loud explosion.
Police are now looking to identify the two males and are reviewing surveillance footage.
"It's a busy plaza and we're hoping someone has seen something and may have even video of the incident, so anyone who may have any information at all is asked to contact us."
India Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj said in a tweet that consular support was available.
