Two Manchester Arena victims could have been saved

The inquiry into the Manchester Arena bombing has moved to examine the response of the emergency services and has heard that two of the victims could have survived with ‘different’ emergency service response.

The inquiry into the terror attack has heard that firefighters did not arrive at Manchester Arena until two hours after the suicide bombing, only one paramedic entered the blast scene in the first 40 minutes, and Greater Manchester police did not declare a major incident until the following day.

The inquiry heard evidence about the deaths of two of the victims, John Atkinson, 28, and Saffie-Rose Roussos – at age eight, the youngest to die in the attack.

Paul Greaney QC, the counsel to the inquiry, said that ‘a different response may have led to a different outcome’ for Atkinson and Roussos.

A report commissioned by the family of Roussos claims she might have survived the bombing if she had received better first aid. Roussos died after excessive blood loss, but the report states her injuries ‘did not reach a threshold where they would be considered incompatible with life’.

Atkinson was evacuated from the arena’s foyer on a cardboard advertising hoarding 45 minutes after the explosion. He was then moved to an area near a station entrance where he remained for a further 24 minutes before chest compressions commenced at 23.47pm and he was taken away in an ambulance. He later died.

Salman Abedi exploded his homemade rucksack bomb in the foyer of the arena shortly after an Ariana Grande concert at 10.31pm on 22 May 2017. Twenty-two people were killed in the blast which also injured hundreds.