Glen Cove Runner Missed Explosions by Half Hour

Christopher Duvally had just cleared the baggage area after finishing the Boston Marathon when he heard explosions four blocks away.

"My initial thought was that it was nothing, but when there were cops coming through saying 'clear the way,' living in New York, you don't take that stuff for granted," said Duvally, 55.

He had crossed the finish line 30 minutes before. When he did, his wife Jeanine, son Michael and daughter Jackie left their spot on the north side of Boylston Street to go meet him. The second explosion occurred near the area they had been standing on the same side of the street.

Duvally said people didn't look panicked. Anticipating street closures, he rushed to find his family and they left. They arrived home in Glen Cove around 10 p.m. and he saw his first images of the carnage he missed by a half-hour.

The blasts killed three people, critically injured 17 and left dozens more wounded.

Duvally said the violence was a terrible end to an event that thousands of runners train for and must qualify to participate in.

"It's a shame. My daughter said, 'Why do these things happen?" It was a tremendous event, and now it's ruined. We'll never go to Boston again without thinking of it," he said.

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