BRIAN NELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Russian authorities are investigating a serious of three car bombings today that killed 21 people and injured more than 100. The blasts all took place within minutes of each other, just north of Russia's border with Chechnya. CNN's Jill Dougherty joins us by phone with the latest from there -- Jill.</s>JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF: Well, Brian, we were just at the scene of the first and the most deadly explosion. It went off at 10 a.m. local time in the city of Mineralnye Vody. The explosive device was hidden in a car parked just outside the central market, near a crowded bus stop. Officials said the bomb was set to go off when the market was crowded with people doing their Saturday shopping, and 19 people were killed there, and dozens injured. The device was filled with pellets, bolts and screws, officials told us, to inflict maximum damage. Doctors at the local hospital said that the injuries were indeed really severe. The second blast occurred outside a police department in a nearby town. That injured a number of people, and then finally a third explosion, as a car on a nearby highway blew up, as the police were inspecting it. Two Interior Ministry officials were killed on the spot. Russian security services almost immediately labeled the explosion as terrorism, noting that all the three bombs went off at the same time. One suspect has been detained on suspicion of having a role in the bombings, and President Vladimir Putin this evening did make some comments. He said that it was a tragic situation. He of course, was immediately notified of the explosions -- Brian.</s>NELSON: All right, thank you, CNN's Jill Doherty in Southern Russia.
Terrorist Bombings in Southern Russia Kill 21 People