BOSTON — Two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon Monday, killing three people and injuring many others in a terrifying scene of broken glass, smoke and severed limbs, authorities said.

There was no immediate word on the motive or who may have launched the attack and authorities in Washington said there was no immediate claim of responsibility. Some 27,000 runners took part in the 26.2-mile race, one of the world’s premier marathons.

The twin blasts at the race took place almost simultaneously and about 100 yards apart, tearing limbs off numerous people, knocking spectators and at least one runner off their feet, shattering windows and sending smoke rising over the street.

For Selma resident Joe Weaver, news of the explosions hit especially close to home, as he was one of the thousands who crossed the finish line during last year’s event.

“I’m just kind of speechless about it,” Weaver said. “[The time of the explosions] is around the same time I finished last year, I would have been right there.”

An avid runner, Weaver said he planned to participate in the marathon again when he turned 60.

“When you get to that point — the finish line — the only thing that’s on your mind is the time clock and you’re just trying to finish,” he said. “To have an explosion come up beside you — it’s just more than I could imagine.”

About two hours after the winners crossed the line, there was a loud explosion on the north side of Boylston Street, just before the photo bridge that marks the finish line. Another explosion could be heard a few seconds later.

“It’s just terrible,” Weaver said. “It makes me very angry, I don’t understand the terrorists and why they want to do this to American people.”

 

Associated Press reports contributed to this report.