To the Editor:

The following account is from Centreville resident Kevin Charles Washburn who ran in Monday’s Boston Marathon.

Due to cramping, I was 30 - 40 minutes behind the time I thought I would run. That put my finish only 10 minutes before the bomb went off.

I walked through the finishing chute and then around a side street. I was back at the point of the first photo when I heard a loud boom, followed by a second one. I thought maybe it was a cannon from a boat, being Patriot's Day and having historic boats nearby. If I had just turned my head to the left, I would have seen the smoke down Boyston Street.

The Boston Marathon is an amazing event, with 27,000 runners and another 500,000 spectators. It's a shame that someone would do this. I really feel sorry for all those who were injured and killed.

Security is really tight in Boston and at the airport. At the airport a police officer saw my Boston jacket and interviewed me to see if I saw anything suspicious. So I'm guessing they don't have many leads right now.

Kevin Charles Washburn

Centreville