Report: Boston's History Of Hosting Large Events Helped Marathon Response

A Harvard University report concludes that Boston's history of hosting large events helped first responders act quickly in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing.

The report — entitled "Why Was Boston Strong?," from the Harvard Kennedy School Program on Crisis Leadership — commended senior commanders for quickly coordinating the bombing response, but found communication broke down days later during the manhunt for the suspects in Watertown, endangering responders and bystanders.

The report said that failure was due, in part, to public safety officers "operating as individuals, rather than in disciplined units."

Fatigue was also an issue, the report indicated, as, at the end of the manhunt, many responders had been awake for 36 hours or more.

Herman "Dutch" Leonard, a co-author of the report, joined WBUR Thursday morning to discuss the findings. Click the audio player above for Bob Oakes' full interview.