The blast damaged the entrance of the building and some windows were blown out. Investigators examining closed circuit television footage taken by security cameras and said they had questioned witnesses. But no arrests were reported.
As a precaution, other diplomatic missions in New York were inspected after the blast, officials said.

“The devices were placed in the soil of one of 12 large concrete planters in front of the location. The blast caused a foot-long chunk of concrete of the planter to explode into the front of the building,” Kelly added.

“This building houses the British consulate; there are other foreign offices in the building as well. However we have no known motive for this action at this time.”
“There is no reason to jump to the conclusion that any floor was a particular target at this time,” said New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

British consulates are not used for voting for elections, but Britons have also been a target because of their country’s strong support for the US-led invasion of Iraq.
Bomb attacks hit the British Consulate and a British bank in Istanbul in November 2003. The British consul was among 32 people killed.
The British consul general in New York, Sir Philip Thomas, said he planned to open the office later in the day and to hold an evening party to watch British election results.

Police said only one person was inside the 21-storey building in midtown Manhattan when the blast occurred. The British consulate is on the ninth and 10th floors.
“There’s been no threat, no phone call before or after this event. There has been no other consulate that has been threatened, it’s quiet in the city,” Bloomberg said. “There is no reason to jump to the conclusion that any floor was a particular target at this time.”

Traffic was blocked on Manhattan’s Third Avenue where the building is located. Many who work in the area were surprised and alarmed, and stood uncertain of what to do, reaching for cell phones.

“I called my office manager, he said the best thing was to come in,” said Daniela Locicero, a television programming analyst. “I didn’t want to come,” she said.
In a bid to calm a city dramatically shaken by the September 11, 2001 strikes, the mayor added: “This kind of thing is something that we are all concerned about and my advice to the public is to go about your lives.”

The city has been on a high state of alert ever since September 11, when almost 3,000 people were killed in the collapse of the World Trade Center towers.
British security forces had warned of the risk of a terrorist attack in London in the run-up to the general election.
Ahead of polling day in Spain in March 2004, 10 bombs ripped apart four trains, killing 191 people in the Madrid blasts, the worst terror attack the country has known.