Blast Rocks Olympic Park

A large explosion rocked Centennial Olympic Park early today, injuring hundreds of people, fire officials said.

Early indications were that as many as 200 people were injured, some of them seriously, by the explosion, which occurred at 1:25 a.m. The area was immediately surrounded by police and cordoned off to all spectators, including the media.

The area was filled with flashing red lights, including police and fire rescue vehicles.

“We just know that something exploded, but we don’t know what happened,” said State Law Enforcement Command official Lloyd Strickland.

The exact area appeared to be near the corner of Techwood and Harris Drive, which is next to the AT&T; Global Village, a major attraction at the Centennial Park.

That area is in the heart of the downtown Olympic activity and is one corner of the international press center, which houses as many as 5,000 media here to cover the Games.

Within 15 minutes of the explosion, the press center was closed because guards said they feared another explosion.

The area outside was chaotic with police and Olympic security people, trying to herd the crowds away from the scene.

Two witnesses, Brian Terwilliger of Alpharetta, Ga. and Terry Tyson of Atlanta, described the scene.

“There were lots of people laying around,” Terwilliger said. “I saw three men on there backs with blood on their legs.”

Tyson said: “It was a huge explosion. Everybody started running in panic. I ran about five steps and saw a woman holding her face and there was blood all over her face.”

The downtown area has been the scene of nightly crowds, estimated as high as 100,000 people. Centennial Olympic Park, until three or four months ago, was a vacant area that was made into a central gathering place by the Atlanta Olympic Committee.

Each night, to draw crowds, there have been popular rock and roll bands and other entertainment.