Lessons even in tragedy

When two bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, it not only killed three people and injured 147 others, but also ripped the soul of a city institution and proved that no place is safe any more. The fact that it was executed at an event such as the Boston Marathon came as a double blow. The Boston Marathon is the oldest marathon in the world and has seen and lived through the two World Wars. More than 20,000 runners from all over the world participate in the race, transcending nationality, religion and other differences. Marathons are a testament of human endurance, and as any runner will tell you, of the power of the mind over the body. The support of thousands of people cheering the runners on from the sidelines is a reminder of the celebration of the human spirit, which is essentially the core of any marathon.u00a0

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Yet, one can only think about the 8-year-old boy who was killed while waiting for his father to cross the finish line. Or the 11-year-old boy from California who wanted to take his mother’s photograph as she crossed the finish line, but ended up as one of the injured in the blast. These are just a few of statistics that will haunt Boston Marathon for a long time to come. The grief and shock is all pervasive today.

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If we can take something back from this event, it is how well-oiled emergency response services were, from medics to police, who were on the scene in a matter of minutes. Even through that tragic chaos, one could feel that the responders were able to take things in control fairly quickly. India, which has been a victim of terror attacks repeatedly, should take lessons from them.u00a0

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