Anniversary of Myyrmanni bombing

The Myyrmanni bombing took place on October 11, 2002 in Myyrmäki in the Myyrmanni shopping mall. The bomb killed seven, including a 7-year-old child and the bomber, Petri Gerdt, a 19-year-old chemical engineering student from EVTEK (Espoo-Vantaa Institute of Technology). It was claimed on local news that Gerdt blew himself up because of girlfriend problems.The incident was particularly shocking for Finland and the other Nordic countries where bombings are extremely uncommon. Read more

Myyrmanni was built in the early 1990's and it has over 120 stores and 1,100 parking spaces. My Finnish teacher had told me then in 2002 that she had just left the place five minutes before the bombing took place. First reactions to the bombing was that of a terriost act and many were relieved to hear that it was otherwise.

Juha Haataja's eyewitness account