The explosion in NY comes as foreign leaders, including many heads of state, are heading to Manhattan for the United Nations General Assembly.
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Personnel from the New York Police Department, FBI and counter-terrorism agencies are on the scene where restaurants and shops have been evacuated and subways in the area have been shut down. Officials said no evacuations were necessary. He said the other injuries were minor, described as scrapes and bruises.
Local media reported that New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio is rushing to the explosion scene.
Obama is scheduled to travel to NY on Saturday and stay in the city for the next several days to attend the United Nations General Assembly session beginning on Sunday. He made the announcement minutes after stepping off his plane during a rally at an airport hangar in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
He continued, “But boy we are living in a time – we better get very tough, folks”.
Police arrive on the scene of an explosion in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood, in New York, Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016.
Trump’s rival Hillary Clinton, meanwhile, sought to present a more cautions response, underscoring the difference between the two candidates’ styles.
She was in the Washington DC addressing the Congressional Black Caucus dinner.
The New York Fire Department says 25 people were injured in the explosion. There were no injuries in that incident.
Police said they found a possible secondary device at West 27th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenue.
A USA official said the Joint Terrorism Task Force, an interagency group of federal, state and local officials, was responding to the blast, suggesting authorities have not ruled out the possibility of a terror attack.
The Joint Terrorism Task Force suggests that authorities have not ruled out the possibility of a terror attack while others have suggested that the cause may be an accidental trigger of construction explosives.
The New York Post reports a “dumpster” blew up at 8:30pm New York time in Chelsea, blowing out the lower windows of a 14-storey residence for the blind.
New York City sent out an emergency alert to expect extensive traffic delays in the area of 23rd St. and 7th Ave.
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The explosion happened at about 8:30 p.m. on Saturday between 6th Avenue and 7th Avenue on 23rd Street, the fire department tweeted. He says several people were taken to hospitals with injuries.
