Two teenagers riding a motorcycle were nearly killed after another abandoned motorcycle exploded in front of a hotel in the southern Colombian city of Samaniego.
A surveillance camera shows residents walking past the motorcycle unaware that it was laced with explosives while a National Police pickup truck reversed into the nearby precinct.
Civilians on two bikes and a pickup truck can also be seen passing by the explosives-laden vehicle in the seconds leading up to the explosion on Thursday afternoon.
The two teens, whose names were not released, were heading to a Provincial Band Meeting and made at left at the corner of the hotel where they were staying when the motorcycle bomb was detonated.
The impact of the blast knocked them to the ground as flames engulfed the bombed motorcycle.
Two teens aboard a motorcycle approach the bomb-laden motorcycle (circled in red) that was abandoned in front of a hotel and exploded in Samaniego, Colombia on Thursday
A motorcycle laced with explosives exploded near a hotel and National Police station in Samaniego, Colombia, on Thursday. Authorities are looking into whether the suspects were targeting the hotel or the police
The teen riding the motorcycle quickly stood up and walked to the opposite sidewalk and then returned to help his friend, who slowly got on his feet.
They were rushed to Lorencita Villegas de Santos Hospital, the National Police said in a statement to DailyMail.com.
Noticias Caracol reported that a third person, who was inside the hotel, was also injured.
One of the victims who was traveling on the motorcycle was later transferred to a medical facility in the municipality of Pasto and is in stable condition.
The National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia identified double bass player, Jorge Prada, as one of the victims.
The bombing didn’t deter residents and bands members from attending Provincial Band Meeting, where the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia performed.
Two teenagers stand near their wrecked motorcycle that was knocked to the ground following a motorcycle bombing (pictured in flames to the left). The teens were taken to a local medical facility, where they were treated. The extent of their injuries in unknown
The National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia performed at the Provincial Band Meeting on Thursday after a motorcycle bomb attack injured three people, including double bass player Jorge Prada
‘Our mission as a Symphonic Band and Association is to bring sounds of peace and reconciliation to all corners of Colombia,’ the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia said in a statement.
‘We firmly believe that music is a universal language capable of healing, uniting and transforming. If the sound of bombs reaches our territories, our sounds of peace and hope, through music, will resonate even louder.’
Investigators are looking into whether the suspects behind the attack targeted the hotel or the National Police station, Noticias Caracol reported.
Area residents told authorities that concerns have been elevated in the city due to the presence of the National Liberation Army, the Marxist-Leninist guerrilla group, according to El Colombiano.
Residents walk by the abandoned motorcycle laced with explosives moments before it was detonated and injured three people in Samaniego, Colombia, on Thursday
Pictured: The aftermath of the bombing at Samaniego
The government for the province of Nariño has used the city of Samaniego to host rounds of peace talks with leaders of the guerrilla group, which is recognized as a terror organization by Canada, Colombia, the European Union, New Zealand and the United States.
Nariño Congressman Erick Velasco, without mentioning the terror group by name, called on it to lay down their arms and agree to a peace treaty.
‘I reject the cowardly motorcycle bomb attack perpetrated against the population of Samaniego and I ask the Minister of Defense to take measures to guarantee the well-being and protection of the community,’ Velasco wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
‘I demand that the violent ones cease the violence and have the courage to commit to the peace that Nariño demands and needs.’
