Boston remembers on one-year anniversary of marathon bombings

One year ago today, two homemade bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. The blast tore through the crowd of spectators, killing three people. Shrapnel from the homemade devices injured more than 260 others, leading to limb amputations in many cases.

As first responders and doctors worked to save the lives of those caught in the blast, police launched a manhunt for whomever was responsible. Three days after the bombings they had zeroed in on two suspects: brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Pictures of the brothers were released and a city-wide manhunt ensued. A campus police officer was killed and the entire city shut down before Tamerlan was also killed and Dzhokhar was apprehended and taken into custody. He has since pleaded not guilty.

Today, Boston remembers. Families of the victims gathered at a memorial on Boylston Street, the site of the bombing, for a private ceremony, along with Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh and Governor Deval Patrick. The siblings of Martin Richard, 8, the youngest victim to die in the bombing, placed a wreath near the bombing site. Krystle Campbell, 29, and Lingzi Lu, 23, a Chinese national studying at Boston University, were also killed in the blast. Another wreath was laid just down the street, where the second bomb detonated.

A larger ceremony is scheduled at a Boston convention centre Tuesday afternoon. There, survivors are expected to speak before the ceremony moves outside. At 2:49 p.m, the time of the first blast, everyone will observe a moment of silence to remember the lives lost.

Related, from the Maclean’s archives:

• The suspects behind the Boston Marathon bombing
• Boston bleeds
• 24 hours of chaos: A timeline in photos
• ‘CAPTURED!!! The search is done. The terror is over’