Video contains graphic content
Jurors in the trial of the man accused of planting the Parsons Green Tube bomb have been hearing dramatic testimonies from witnesses who described how a fireball swept through the District Line train last September.
One woman tearfully told the court how she jumped from the Tube and felt her hands and face burning as her coat caught fire, the Press Association reported.
CCTV footage screened in court showed the moment a huge fireball engulfed the District Line Tube, with panicked commuters cowering from the flames before rushing out of the soot-covered train in Parsons Green station.
Eighteen-year-old Ahmed Hassan is on trial for attempted murder and causing an explosion likely to endanger life. He denies the charges.
The jury was shown CCTV footage of Hassan on 14 September – the day before the attack – allegedly buying material for shrapnel for the bomb from Asda in Feltham, before cycling to an Aldi supermarket.
A camera at a self-service till appeared to show the teenager showing a shop assistant some form of ID.
Detective Constable Andrew Leonard told the court the Asda receipt was later recovered and showed that he bought matches, a screwdriver bit set and batteries. Jurors were told the batteries could have been used for the bomb timer.
CCTV footage from close to Hassan’s home in Sunbury on the day of the attack appeared to show him leaving through the back garden at around 7am, carrying a Lidl bag. He was also caught on camera walking to the station.
Hassan is then alleged to have left the Tube train one stop earlier at Putney Bridge, having left the Lidl bag behind.
The court was also saw footage of him at Wimbledon station, where he allegedly spent 13 minutes in a toilet setting the timer on the home-made device before getting on the train.
As jurors watched the footage intently, Hassan sat with his head bowed, not looking at the screens.
Thirty people were injured in the incident. Some were badly burned and others were injured in the “stampede” as they fled in fear and panic, the Old Bailey was told.
The court heard from Aimee Colville, who got on the District line train at Parsons Green, moments before the explosion. Describing what happened, she said: “I heard a loud bang, like a cracking bang.”
She added: “Then the next thing, there was a bit of a shudder and then a wall of glass came across and the gentleman who was standing in front of me, his head went forward when I saw the glass coming in front of me.”
Miss Colville explained: “After he moved forward I don’t know if I physically got myself down or if I blacked out, but at that point I noticed a flame come over my right side.
“It came over my side and that is when I smelt the burning.”
She added: “That morning I had curled my hair and I had put hairspray in my hair, so when the flames came over me my hair immediately caught fire.”
The trial continues.