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A man has been arrested after an "attempted terror attack" during rush hour in New York.
Authorities said 27-year-old Akayed Ullah was wearing an "improvised low-tech explosive device" when he "intentionally detonated" it on a passageway near the Port Authority bus station close to the city's tourist mecca Times Square.
The bomb was strapped to his body with Velcro and zip ties, police said.
It's understood that 27-year-old Akayed Ullah is of Bangladeshi descent and lives in Brooklyn. (Supplied)
The New York Post published this photo which purports to show Ullah on the ground with wounds to his stomach.
Surveillance cameras captured the man walking casually through the crowded passage when the bomb went off at 7.20am local time amid a plume of white smoke, which cleared to show the man sprawled on the ground and commuters scattering to get away.
Investigators said it was not clear if he set the bomb off intentionally or prematurely.
"This was an attempted terrorist attack," Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters.
"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals."
Ullah is being treated at a hospital for burns to his hands and abdomen. The others who were injured suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.
New York's governor, Andrew Cuomo, said Ullah may have crafted the device from online instructions, and so far it doesn't appear to be part of a larger plot.
Mr Cuomo told cable news channel NY1 that officials "have reason to believe that this person went to the internet and found out how to make a homemade bomb".
Law enforcement officials said Ullah was inspired by ISIS but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group and probably acted alone.
The officials said the suspect lives in Brooklyn and came to the US from Bangladesh about seven years ago. They said he was speaking with investigators from his hospital bed.
A person briefed on the investigation said Ullah came to the US on an F-4 visa, a preferential visa available for those with family in the US who are citizens, and that he made the bomb in his apartment. They spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.
Investigators are searching Ullah’s apartment, interviewing witnesses and relatives and looking for surveillance footage that may show his movements in the moments before the attack.
The suspect has been named as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah. (AAP)
Police guard the Port Authority station. (AAP)
The explosion, which happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues, triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.
It's the city's busiest subway station and a major transit hub, with 64 million subway riders passing through every year. In 2016, daily ridership on the subway was 5.7 million, a record high.
Everything around Times Square was shut down, halting what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour at the "Crossroads of the World." But streets quickly began returning to normal, and traffic around the area was expected to be operational by the evening rush.
Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and plastic ties. They were investigating how it was made.
Police block streets in New York City. (AAP)
Emergency crews respond to the explosion. (AAP)
Port Authority police said officers found the man injured on the ground, with wires protruding from his jacket to his pants and the device strapped to his torso under his coat. They said he was reaching for a mobile phone and they grabbed his hands.
A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.
Instead of commenting on the suspected terror attack, Mr Trump sent a tweet this morning criticizing a story in The New York Times that said he watched cable news television for at least four hours a day.
The blast came just weeks after eight people died in New York when another man, also said to be inspired by ISIS, drove a rented truck onto a bike path near the World Trade Center.
One person has been arrested following the explosion. (AAP)
Mr Cuomo said at a news conference following the attack that New Yorkers should be alert but go about their lives.
"Let's go back to work," he said.
"We're not going to allow them to disrupt us."
With Associated Press.
© Nine Digital Pty Ltd 2017
https://www.9news.com.au/world/2017...-respond-to-reports-of-explosion-in-manhattan
Authorities said 27-year-old Akayed Ullah was wearing an "improvised low-tech explosive device" when he "intentionally detonated" it on a passageway near the Port Authority bus station close to the city's tourist mecca Times Square.
The bomb was strapped to his body with Velcro and zip ties, police said.
It's understood that 27-year-old Akayed Ullah is of Bangladeshi descent and lives in Brooklyn. (Supplied)
The New York Post published this photo which purports to show Ullah on the ground with wounds to his stomach.
Surveillance cameras captured the man walking casually through the crowded passage when the bomb went off at 7.20am local time amid a plume of white smoke, which cleared to show the man sprawled on the ground and commuters scattering to get away.
Investigators said it was not clear if he set the bomb off intentionally or prematurely.
"This was an attempted terrorist attack," Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters.
"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals."
Ullah is being treated at a hospital for burns to his hands and abdomen. The others who were injured suffered ringing in the ears and headaches.
New York's governor, Andrew Cuomo, said Ullah may have crafted the device from online instructions, and so far it doesn't appear to be part of a larger plot.
Mr Cuomo told cable news channel NY1 that officials "have reason to believe that this person went to the internet and found out how to make a homemade bomb".
Law enforcement officials said Ullah was inspired by ISIS but had apparently not had any direct contact with the group and probably acted alone.
The officials said the suspect lives in Brooklyn and came to the US from Bangladesh about seven years ago. They said he was speaking with investigators from his hospital bed.
A person briefed on the investigation said Ullah came to the US on an F-4 visa, a preferential visa available for those with family in the US who are citizens, and that he made the bomb in his apartment. They spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the blast.
Investigators are searching Ullah’s apartment, interviewing witnesses and relatives and looking for surveillance footage that may show his movements in the moments before the attack.
The suspect has been named as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah. (AAP)
Police guard the Port Authority station. (AAP)
The explosion, which happened in an underground passageway under 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues, triggered a massive emergency response by police and firefighters both above and below ground, tangling subway and bus service at the nearby Port Authority bus terminal.
It's the city's busiest subway station and a major transit hub, with 64 million subway riders passing through every year. In 2016, daily ridership on the subway was 5.7 million, a record high.
Everything around Times Square was shut down, halting what would ordinarily be a bustling rush hour at the "Crossroads of the World." But streets quickly began returning to normal, and traffic around the area was expected to be operational by the evening rush.
Authorities said the bomb was a low-tech explosive device attached to the man with Velcro and plastic ties. They were investigating how it was made.
Police block streets in New York City. (AAP)
Emergency crews respond to the explosion. (AAP)
Port Authority police said officers found the man injured on the ground, with wires protruding from his jacket to his pants and the device strapped to his torso under his coat. They said he was reaching for a mobile phone and they grabbed his hands.
A photo published by the New York Post showed a bearded man crumpled on the ground with his shirt apparently blown off and black soot covering his bare midriff.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the explosion.
Instead of commenting on the suspected terror attack, Mr Trump sent a tweet this morning criticizing a story in The New York Times that said he watched cable news television for at least four hours a day.
The blast came just weeks after eight people died in New York when another man, also said to be inspired by ISIS, drove a rented truck onto a bike path near the World Trade Center.
One person has been arrested following the explosion. (AAP)
Mr Cuomo said at a news conference following the attack that New Yorkers should be alert but go about their lives.
"Let's go back to work," he said.
"We're not going to allow them to disrupt us."
With Associated Press.
© Nine Digital Pty Ltd 2017
https://www.9news.com.au/world/2017...-respond-to-reports-of-explosion-in-manhattan
