American Sisters Remain Hospitalized

Two sisters injured when a bomb exploded behind them in a London subway car were recovering at a hospital Friday, one with shrapnel wounds in her back and neck and the other undergoing a second surgery on her feet, their family said Friday.

In all, four Americans were among the more than 700 people hurt in a series of bombings targeting three subway stations and a double-decker bus during Thursday morning rush hour, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said.

The other two Americans were treated and released, Casey said. He provided no further details, citing privacy regulations.

Sisters Kathleen “Katie” Benton, 21, and Emily Benton, 20, were alert and talkative and were to be moved to a semiprivate room Friday so they could be together, their family said on a website for Fellowship Church in Knoxville.

“They were going to spend a week together, hanging out and sightseeing,” said Alan Ramsey, a youth minister who spoke with the sisters’ parents. “That was Day 1 of their trip.”

Katie Benton had been in Kenya on a school-related trip and Emily Benton flew to London to meet her, Ramsey said.

The bomb blast left Emily with several broken bones and skin missing on her feet. She had one surgery Thursday and a second operation on Friday, Ramsey said.

The sisters were traveling alone during their summer break from college, said their father, Dudley. The young women’s mother, Patty, arrived in London early Friday.

Katie Benton is a student at the University of Tennessee and Emily attends Pellissippi State Technical Community College in Knoxville.