Samford students, Southern Baptists in London unhurt

Students from Samford University and other Southern Baptists who were in London at the time of the July 7 bombings came through unscathed, according to reports.
   
Samford’s London Study Centre, known as Daniel House, serves as home and classroom to Samford students during the year. It is located in the Kensington Park area of London.
   
The 15 Samford students who were at the center for summer studies left London June 24. Current residents include 17 members of a Samford-sponsored Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research trip, three Samford students who are working internships and retired Samford administrator Joe Lewis and his wife, Shirley, who are the centre’s summer hosts.
   
The student interns are Abby Banks, a graphic design major from Birmingham; Jessica Colbert, a business major from Martinez, Ga.; and Laura Ratzlaf, a theatre major from Destin, Fla.
   
According to Lewis, the bombings were several miles from Daniel House. “They were on the northern part of the Circle and District (subway) Lines while we are on the southern part. Our location was not involved at all in the destruction,” Lewis wrote in an e-mail July 7.
   
“We, of course, are very shocked and saddened by the events in London,” said Samford President Thomas E. Corts. “Because of our program there, London is a very special place to Samford. The university community will continue to pray for those affected, both directly and indirectly, by these events.”
   
Baptists who work in London shared their experiences by e-mail and phone calls back to America.
   
Southern Baptist worker Tabatha Rains (name changed for security reasons) had finished her term in London and was looking forward to flying home to Denver when the underground train she was aboard suddenly stopped. Rains, who teaches English in the city, did not learn of the reason until after getting off the train and hearing about the explosions while making her way back to her flat in the city.
   
Although she missed her flight, Rains and her fellow workers in the city were unharmed. Colbert, who works in London as an intern at the American Embassy, reported in a July 7 e-mail to Samford that her early morning commute on the bus system was normal, but her daily routine soon changed quickly.
   
A little after 9 a.m., she said, the Marines who work security announced the news of the bombings over the embassy intercom. “All morning we could hear sirens all around the streets of London. Colleagues, who normally commute an hour to get to work, were worried about how they were going to get home. The London public transport system had shut down completely. This system is the backbone of London. (The city) doesn’t work without it,” Colbert said.
   
As news reports continued, she said, “Everyone was very uneasy. No one knew when the news of another bomb would turn up. And being at the embassy, everyone was a little nervous.”
   
Colbert said she was relieved to confirm the safety of her Daniel House roommate, Ratzlaf, who regularly uses one of the affected stations in her morning commute.
   
By 1 p.m., Colbert said, as police were instructing people to stay put, embassy officials suggested that staff members leave if they felt they should. “Because of all the precautions taken, everyone at the embassy knew the dangers of terrorist attacks, and did not want to be in a place that is considered a major target,” she said.
   
“I walked home, only about an hour to an hour and a half away. It was raining, sirens were going off, police cars and ambulances were racing down the streets, and everyone seemed to be tense and uncomfortable. I was very thankful to return to the Daniel House.” (SU, BP)