Smoke bombs cripple Montreal subway system during morning rush hour

 

A security guard directs commuters to buses outside the station after smoke bombs closed the whole Montreal subway system Thursday.

MONTREAL—In what appears to be coordinated hit on Montreal’s subway system, smoke bombs were set off in at least four key metro stations at the height of the morning rush hour Thursday, forcing a rare, complete shutdown of the network.
By 10 a.m. service was slowly being restored to most of the subway lines after the disruption, which Quebec Public Safety Minister Robert Dutil called “intolerable.”
“It’s completely intolerable what has just happened,” the minister said. We are facing a completely new phenomenon, it seems that this is not a solitary action, but a concerted action…I think we have arrived at something very serious.”
Police said the smoke bombs were thrown in four stations, including three major transfer points.
No one appeared to have been overcome by the smoke, but thousands of commuters’ morning travels were completely disrupted. Montreal’s public transport service, the STM, wasn’t able to provide enough shuttle buses to cope with the shutdown, several frustrated commuters said.
The disruption caused such traffic chaos above ground that Montreal’s ambulances were having trouble navigating their way to local hospitals.
Montreal police aren’t so far attributing blame, but the system has been interrupted in recent weeks – by both smoke bombs and bricks thrown on to the tracks – as Montreal faces daily student protests related to provincial tuition hikes.
Police have warned repeatedly over the last few weeks that radical groups have penetrated student protests and have taken the opportunity to cause property damage and the like.
Commuters vented their rage on radio stations and newspaper web sites, and even spoke of “terrorism.”
“We’re talking about actions of sabotage and terrorism,” one person wrote. “Please help to identify the guilty persons. They must be identified and put in prison for terrorism even if it’s the students. They are intolerable actions that have impacts on the economy and on Quebec’s and Canada’s position in the world. Enough is enough!”
Students continue to lock horns with the government after nearly all individual associations rejected an agreement their umbrella federations struck with the government last week.
Several protests over the past few weeks have degenerated into violence and vandalism, with injuries to both protesters and police.
Students continue to stage nightly protests in Montreal. Wednesday’s took place peacefully.