Blast scene a 'war-zone'

2005-10-02 10:50

Sydney - Australian witnesses to the latest string of bombings in Bali spoke on Sunday of scenes of carnage, panic and distress at the sites of the attacks that killed at least 25 people and injured scores more.

Australian cameraman Sean Mulcahy, who was dining near the blast at the beach resort of Kuta, said both areas where the bombs hit were scenes of devastation.

"There's a lot of injuries, a lot of horrific injuries, particularly in Kuta," he told ABC radio.

"We sort of moved around, I spent the night travelling around the various sites, went to Jimbaran, which was an equally devastating scene - bodies were still being brought out of there some three-and-a-half, four hours later."

Speaking on Sky News, Mulcahy said the scene at the hospital could "only be described as something out of a war-zone."

"There was blood covering the entire floor... people were being resuscitated on the floor in the waiting room, people with limbs missing... it was utter chaos," he said.

Mercedes Corby, whose sister Schapelle became a cause celebre in Australia earlier this year after she was charged with drug trafficking and sentenced to 20 years in jail, spent the evening helping the injured.

Mercedes Corby, who lives in Bali, said many of the blast victims had shrapnel wounds, broken bones, horrific burns and eye injuries.

Corby praised the efforts of the Indonesian officials but said the island's hospital had struggled to cope with the influx of wounded.

Australian Adam Frost said some of his friends sustained fatal injuries.

All of his group of nine couples had "various states of injuries, some didn't survive and I'm waiting to go to the morgue to identify them," he said.

Australian Vicky Griffiths, who is recovering in hospital from her injuries, which include ball-bearings lodged in her back, said she had initially thought the first explosion was an accident.

Griffiths, who was holidaying with her husband Kim, had been dining with friends when the blast struck.

"The first explosion I actually thought was a gas bottle so I... just said to everyone, 'stay calm, it's probably just a gas bottle, we'll be okay'," Griffiths told ABC radio.

"Then another girl... said we should run to the beach so we picked our bags up and were just about to run and the second one went off just behind us... I think about eight feet.

"I was thrown, picked up with the blast to my back and I was picked up and thrown over the table to the ground and I landed on someone, I don't know who.

"Then Kim came and got me and dragged me along the sand, I couldn't get up," she said.

Kim Griffiths said the scene had been one of panic.

"I just heard everybody screaming... my wife was six foot away, I ran over and grabbed her and pulled her out and went down to the beach," he said.

- AP