The 1992 Staples Corner bombing occurred on 11 April 1992 when the Provisional IRA detonated a large van bomb near the Staples Corner junction in North West London, England.
Description
The attack happened at 1:10 am, a few hours after the major bombing of the Baltic Exchange seven miles away which killed three people. The bomb was home-made like the Baltic Exchange one, and was placed in a white Bedford van.[1] The IRA gave telephone warnings 50 minutes prior from a phone operator in Portadown, Northern Ireland. Police located the van and evacuated the area.[2]
Although no injuries were caused, the blast was powerful and caused significant damage to roads, leaving a crater on the A5 Edgware Road flyover beneath the North Circular Road.[3] It was strong enough to be felt several miles away. The bomb damaged a three-storey B&Q DIY superstore and a steel-framed warehouse, and severely damaged warehouse property constructed of light cladding. It was estimated the explosive force was around 100 kg.[4] An eyewitness said the B&Q store was "completely destroyed" and the roof collapsed.[5]
Aftermath
The B&Q superstore had to be demolished and the junction was closed for several months, causing severe disruption.[6] It is one of London's busiest intersections as it forms the lead of the M1 motorway.[7]
On the morning of 8 October 1993, the IRA targeted Staples Corner once again with a small explosion. Around the same time another bomb detonated 2 miles away on West End Lane in West Hampstead.[8] No injuries were caused. In 1994 two IRA members, Gerard Mackin and Derek Doherty, were found guilty of planting 12 bombs throughout London over seven days in October 1993.[9]
In popular culture
Staples Corner is featured in Patrick Keiller's 1994 film London. The scene showcases the wreckage of the bombing days after the explosion in 1992.[10]
See also
References
- ^ Kirby, Terry (14 July 1992). "IRA City bombers identified by police". The Independent. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
- ^ Mickolus, Edward F.; Simmons, Susan L. (1997). Terrorism, 1992-1995: A Chronology of Events and a Selectively Annotated. Greenwood. ISBN 978-0313304682.
- ^ Oppenheimer, A. R. (2008). IRA, The Bombs and the Bullets: A History of Deadly Ingenuity. Irish Academic Press. ISBN 978-0716528951.
- ^ Bangash, T. (2010). Explosion-Resistant Buildings: Design, Analysis, and Case Studies. Springer. ISBN 978-3642058301.
- ^ "City of London bomb – news report · British Universities Film & Video Council". Bufvc.ac.uk. 11 April 1992. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
- ^ Ahmed, Fatema (27 April 2015). "In Brent Cross". London Review of Books. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
- ^ "IRA claims it planted bomb that killed three – UPI Archives". Upi.com. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
- ^ "Two bomb blasts in North London · British Universities Film & Video Council". Bufvc.ac.uk. 9 October 1993. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
- ^ "IRA men guilty of conspiring to plant bombs in London". Herald Scotland. 20 October 1994. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
- ^ Kinik, Anthony (1 August 2008). "Dynamic of the Metropolis: The City Film and the Spaces of Modernity" (PDF). McGill University, Montreal. Retrieved 18 May 2018.