A bomb attack has shut down the metro in St. Petersburg, Russia, multiple media outlets are reporting.
According to CNN, at least 10 people are dead and about 50 injured as a result of the blast.
The Washington Post reports that the city’s entire subway system has been shut down as a precaution, and new security measures have been added around the city. The explosion took place the same day as Russian President Vladimir Putin was holding talks with Belarusan leader Alexander Lukashenko.
According to the BBC, the blast hit a train traveling between Sennaya Ploshchad and Tekhnologichesky Institut metro stations. While President Putin had told the BBC that all causes, including terrorism, were being investigated, a spokesperson for the Russian prosector general called the explosion “a terrorist act.”
Sennaya Ploshchad is a large city square in central St. Petersburg, which until 2010 hosted a “Peace Column,” a gift from France that featured the word “peace” written on it in 49 languages. According to Lonely Planet, the square is also famous for being featured in classic Russian novel Crime and Punishment. Lonely Planet advises travelers to be on their guard if walking around in the area at night.
St. Petersburg is a major cruise destination on lines that offer sailings to Russia. Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection and Viking River Cruises both offer river cruise itineraries that call at St. Petersburg. In terms of ocean cruises, Cunard offers calls at the destination as part of its Baltic, Scandinavia & Iceland itinerary.
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