Westport seems like a long way from Boston, but today’s attack on the Boston Marathon brought Westporters to their phones and the internet to check on friends and relatives.

Emma Muro’s mom was running in the marathon and finished three short minutes before the bombs went off, Muro ’14 said.

“She was in the area getting her medal and water when the bomb went off,” Muro said. “She was about 2 blocks from it, and she felt the ground shake and saw a 50 foot plume of smoke in the air.”

The explosions occurred at about 2:45 p.m. According to multiple news sources, three were killed and more than 100 were injured, many seriously.

“It really puts things in perspective. If she’d stopped to tie her shoe, get water, or use the bathroom she could’ve been seriously injured,” Muro said.

Muro concluded, “We’re just really overwhelmed with relief that she’s alright. It was a really scary thing to live through, especially not knowing if she was okay or not. The whole city was a frenzy.”

The Marathon is always held on Patriot’s Day, the third Monday in April. This year, just under 27,000 runners participated in the race.

Charlie Greenwald, an Emerson College freshman under lockdown and a ‘12 SHS alum, lives in a dorm three blocks away from the explosions and had just run by the explosions site 90 minutes earlier. Greenwald said he didn’t hear the explosion but ran outside his dorm as soon as he heard the news.

“I saw people rushing towards me yelling, screaming, and crying,” Greenwald said.  “All of my friends in Boston need support and love and unfortunately, I haven’t heard from several friends yet.”

“I ran an hour before the bombing occurred and checked out the scene. When I saw posts on Facebook, I just couldn’t believe it. Emerson is three blocks away from Bolyston Street and now, we’re in lockdown,” Charlie Greenwald said.

Later, news sources reported that seven Emerson students were injured.

Cell phone services were overloaded, so much so that law enforcement shut them all down all, in order to prevent the detonation of more explosives.

Many Staples students were visiting Boston, some juniors looking at colleges, and some seniors accepted at Boston-area colleges and trying to make a decision before a May 1 deadline.

Peter Elkind ‘14, a member of the Staples track team, was visiting nearby Tufts University when the tragedy occurred. When he discovered what had happened so close by he was in complete shock.

“I thought it couldn’t possibly be true,” he said. “I can’t understand how anyone could do something so horrible at an event like the Boston Marathon that brings people together.”

Elkind described a scene of confusion as details began to arise in the hours after the explosions. “People couldn’t understand it,” he said. “There were whispers of confusion and doubt. As the truth of it began to come out, the tone changed, and everyone became more somber.”

Westport residents who were home watched the events of the afternoon with horror and in disbelief. “I was shocked,” said Tory Scordato ’13. “I couldn’t believe something like that had happened. I thought it was especially sad since the marathon was in part dedicated to Newtown.”

“I just find it disgusting that people do things like that,” Beth Lester ’14 said. “Everytime I hear about someone doing something so despicable, I have the same reaction.”