Boston blasts: Young mom feared for her family after hearing blasts

Young mom-of-two Cary Butterfield last night recalled her terror after she thought her husband and two young children were at the heart of the two Boston Marathon bomb blasts that killed three and injured nearly 200 people.

Ms Butterfield said she expected husband Spencer and their two children to be near the Copley Square finish line to see her finish the run.

She was only 300 yards away from the end when she heard an explosion and saw smoke — and feared the worst for her family.

And she added — if she had not stopped several times to stretch her muscles — she might have been hitting the finish line when the bombs went off.

Ms Butterfield said: “For all I knew, it could have been an explosion that took out Copley Square — I panicked, I was in tears thinking my family were in trouble at the finish line.”

Ms Butterfield, however, didn’t know Spencer, son Cruz, aged one, and daughter Ava, aged four, had been unable to get close to the official end point and were a street away from the explosions — and only a few hundred yards from where she was standing.

Ms Butterfield said she desperately tried to contact Spencer on his cellphone using borrowed cellphones — but at first it wasn’t working, then went to voicemail.

She added: “Everybody’s cellphones were jammed — I got into a residence and they let me use their landline and I got through to him.

“I just broke down in tears as soon as I heard his voice. As soon as the bombs went off, I thought my family was in trouble. I broke down in tears and prayed to God they were okay.”

She added, unlike many people, she immediately assumed the loud bangs and smoke were caused by bombs.

Ms Butterfield said: “For some weird reason, I think because my family was there, I thought the worst. I just wanted to find my family. I couldn’t assume it was fireworks or a cannon going off.”

Ms Butterfield, 30, who was running her first marathon, was speaking as the family recovered from the nightmare at the family home in Pembroke last night. She said: “Coming into Bermuda, I felt a sense of calm. With all that’s going on in Bermuda, I felt very safe in Bermuda when I landed.”

And she added: “I am completely devastated for those families who lost loved ones and whose moms and dads have children in critical condition.

“It’s worse than a parents’ darkest nightmare.”

 But she said she would not be deterred from travelling overseas to run in major events again.

She added: “I’m not scared to go away and I can’t live my life being scared to go away.”

Mr Butterfield, the chief operating officer at food distributors Butterfield & Vallis, added that he heard an explosion and saw smoke.

He said: “By the noise, we knew something was badly wrong and by the reaction of the police officers, we assumed it had been a bomb, but we didn’t know on what scale.

“She was able to get to a residence and was able to call my cell phone. She was a bit of a mess — she knew it had happened at the finishing line, which is where she expected us to be.”  And he said: “We’re thankful all the Bermudians are safe and devastated for everyone who has been affected.”