Timeline of Norway’s July 22, 2011 terror attacks
Apr 16, 2012, 7:29 AM
(AP) – The following is a timeline of events during the July 22, 2011, attacks on a Norwegian government building and a retreat for young political activists, according to police and eyewitnesses. All times are local.
_3:25 p.m.: A car bomb explodes outside the prime minister’s office in Oslo.
_3:28 p.m.: Police deploy a bomb squad to the scene.
_3:31 p.m.: Police send out national alert following witness reports of a man dressed in a uniform leaving the blast site.
_3:34 p.m.: Witnesses report a man “in police uniform and gun in his hand” leaving the Oslo government district in a car. Security guards report possible terror attack.
_3:55 p.m.: National alert sent out on vehicle described by witnesses.
_5:24 p.m.: Police receive reports of shootings on Utoya island where hundreds have gathered for the annual summer camp of the Labor Party’s youth wing.
_5:25 p.m.: Police inspector Jan Erik Haugland receives a distressed call from his 17-year-old daughter on Utoya saying “they’re shooting out here. There’s a man dressed as a police officer.”
_5:30 p.m.: The SWAT team at the government district prepares to leave for Utoya by car, since the crew for the Oslo police department’s only helicopter is on vacation.
_5:40 p.m.: Army tells Oslo police it can have a helicopter ready for takeoff at 6:15 p.m.
_5:40 p.m.: Police in Nordre Buskerud request help from Oslo police, saying a gunman has shot several people on Utoya.
_5:41 p.m.: Police from Nordre Buskerud arrive on the lake where Utoya is situated.
_5:59 p.m.: Suspect calls Nordre Buskerud police, saying he wants to surrender. The operator asks for his name and the call is disconnected.
_6:08 p.m.: The SWAT team arrives by the lake.
_6:18 p.m.: Boat carrying SWAT team breaks down. Other boats are ordered to carry the team to Utoya island.
_6:24 p.m.: Suspect phones police again, introducing himself as the commander of Knights Templar Europe, saying he has completed an “operation” on Utoya. The operator asks for his number and the suspect hangs up.
_6:26 p.m.: The SWAT team arrives on Utoya island.
_6:32-6:34 p.m.: Suspect puts down his weapons and surrenders to police.
_6:57 p.m.: The first of three army and rescue helicopters takes off from Rygge air base, 60 kilometers (40 miles) south of Oslo.
(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)