One week after a series of suicide bombs left 52 London commuters dead, a blast at the Warren Street subway station on Thursday nearby workers expressed shock and annoyance.
Police cordoned off the area about 400 metres from the entrance, reported Globe and Mail correspondent Hamida Ghafour, who arrived on the scene about 20 minutes after the first accounts of people fleeing the station.
At the Oval Station, commuters who complained of a sour smell literally left their high heels on subway platforms in their rush to escape.
The cordoned-off areas are home to small shops, restaurants and bookstores.
"People were panicking and running," Graeme Booth, who was near the Warren Street station, told The Globe. "They were running out of the Victoria line tube. They were like a tidal wave."
A woman nearby said she heard a loud bang about 12:45 p.m. local time. Police have confirmed that four small bombs exploded, three in tube stations and one on a bus.
About 300 people milled around the area after the evacuation, many looking to see what was happening, others trying to find a way to get to their destination.
Many are wondering whether these attacks are a continuation of last week's bombings and people are figuring out how to get around town.
Some of the subway lines are still operating and commuters are using buses.
Offices near the station have been evacuated, workers have gone home and the consensus is that people just want to hunker down and keep out of sight.
Offices around the Warren Street station have been evacuated and some people have gone home.
Witness Ivan McCracken told the Associated Press that another passenger at Warren Street claimed he had seen a backpack explode.
"He said that a man was carrying a rucksack and the rucksack suddenly exploded. It was a minor explosion but enough to blow open the rucksack," Mr. McCracken said.
Some passengers said they had seen abandoned rucksacks at Shepherd's Bush where the BBC is based, as well as on the number 26 bus in Hackney, where the 2012 Olympics will be held.
Paul Williamson, a bank worker who was about 20 yards from the Hackney bus said people ran down the street, saying there was a minor explosion.
"The police were very quick, they came in and just said for everyone to get out of the area because there was a possibility of an explosion," Mr. Williamson said.
These attacks have been less devastating than those that killed 52 transit passengers and the four bombers and injured 700 two weeks ago.
"Well, right now, the street is fairly empty and people going to the local cafés, and getting lunch, and lining up for lunch," shop-owner Rhian Langford told CBC Newsworld. "We still have customers coming in, and police are calm. … People are still at the pub watching cricket, and because there's so little information, people are taking it in their stride."
Ken Hardie, spokesman for the Greater Vancouver Transit Authority, said that such conferences are not unusual, especially after attacks or major incidents on transit systems.
"Out of this [conference]comes what risk level we are at here," he said.
Marilyn Bolten, spokeswoman for the Toronto Transit Commission said the conference was held to make sure that municipal transit authorities were aware of the situation in London and would know whom to contact in case of an incident.
"This is a good opportunity to check that everybody's communication system works well," she said.
With reports from Caroline Byrne