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When Tom Thurman watched on television as the terrorist act on April 15 at the Boston Marathon unfolded, the 3 5-year explosives investigator automatically began taking note.
Beyond the human carnage that killed three and injured an estimated 264 people, Thurman saw an investigator's nightmare. "I thought, oh my goodness, look at all these people and how are you going to control the scene?" he said. "Of course, you want witnesses, but you have so many people there that how are you going to identify who was doing what? I'm thinking about a gargantuan problem of control, because a scene needs control, control, control."
The retired, 20-year FBI investigative veteran also observed that two explosions - 13 seconds and 210 yards apart - immediately meant more than a single individual was involved. And watching a televised, practically live, view of the event also indicated that identifying the bombers would be easier. "I thought immediately this was going to be an historical event...one that was going to be the most photo-documented bombing in this country's history," he said. "They had video running of the race for various purposes and all the people with still and video cameras taking pictures of friends and family" was a huge boost to investigators.
Major incidents investigated
Thurman's perspective in this major domestic act of terrorism is founded on considerable experience as an explosion investigator, which has taken him around the globe: the Beirut, Lebanon, Marine barracks bombing in 1983; Lockerbie, Scotland, and the downing of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988; New York City and the first bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993; and Oklahoma City and the Murrah Federal Building bombing in 1995. The 1969 graduate of Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) and Kentucky native returned to his alma mater to teach in 1998.
Thurman's alacrity in synthesizing a bombing scene brings a new dimension to...