The BBC provides an updated report: Russia train crash ’caused by bomb’

The Nevsky Express derailed with nearly 700 on board as it ran through remote countryside between the capital Moscow and the second city, St Petersburg.

Investigators found “elements of an explosive device” at the scene of Friday’s attack, a statement said.

Officials said a second, less powerful device went off on Saturday near the site of the first, but no-one was hurt.

There was no immediate confirmed claim of responsibility for the blast on Friday evening, which hit a train popular with government officials and business executives at peak travel time.

“Criminology experts say, on the basis of preliminary information, that an improvised explosive device, equivalent to 7kg (15 lb) of TNT, had gone off,” said Alexander Bortnikov, head of Russia’s domestic intelligence service.

There is apparently a crater and explosives residue at the scene, as well as the report of the engineer and several passengers that a bomb went off. A second device went off about 18 hours later after trains were routed by on parallel lines.  Probably caused by the same type of device.

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I drove by the parking lot of the local WalMart today. I guess everyone did their shopping yesterday, because this wasn’t even a busy Saturday crowd. Five years ago they would have been parking on grass and traffic would have been screwed up on the main road, but not today.

This is the end of the month and most people who still have jobs will get paid on the 1^st, so it isn’t surprising. Before people would have put it on plastic, but not this year. The retailers know it, because you don’t see merchandise crowding the aisles, as happened in years past.

If yesterday was Black Friday, today is tinged pink.