All 33 Penn-in-London students safe

LONDON -- Though London was rocked by a series of explosions during the rush hour Thursday morning, all 33 students participating in the Penn-in-London summer program are safe. Undergraduate English Department Chairman Michael Gamer, as well as professors David Wallace, Vicki Mahaffey, Rita Copeland and Ralph Rosen and his family are all safe as well. Most students are being housed at a hostel on Pembridge Gardens near Notting Hill Gate, which was not in harms way. However, a group of four students in the Penn-in-London program who are living in an apartment at the intersection of Harrowby and Brendan Streets was in the midst of the attacks. One of the Underground stations the students use regularly is Edgeware where a bomb ripped through two trains and killed seven people. At this point there is no indication that the students in London will be forced to return home. University officials phoned the parents of each student shortly after the bombings, stating they expected the program to continue. The British Transportation Police have put the total death toll at more than 50, although an official number has yet to be released. At least 700 people were injured in the blast, approximately 100 of which were held over in hospitals Thursday night. Sir Ian Blair, head of the British Metropolitan Police has said there is no doubt that the attacks were carried out by a terrorist cell operating in the United Kingdom. Prime Minister Tony Blair left the G8 summit being held in Gleneagles, Scotland to return to 10 Downing Street. After meeting with the government's emergency committee Blair read a statement, promising that Britain would not bow to the terrorists. "When they try to intimidate us, we will not be intimidated... When they try to divide our people or weaken our resolve, we will not be divided and our resolve will hold firm," Blair said. "We will show, by our spirit and dignity, and by our quiet but true strength that there is in the British people, that our values will long outlast theirs."

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