WORLD : Thieves’ Miscued Blast Hurts 44

BOLOGNA, Italy — An explosive that robbers used to blast open a safe went off prematurely today, wounding at least 44 people during the holdup in a crowded post office, police said.

Many of the wounded were retirees lining up for pension payments.

Police said the payments had just begun when at least three people armed with rifles and pistols stormed into the post office, fired shots in the air and shouted, “This is a robbery!”

The bandits exploded a bomb to force open a safe where more than $500,000 had been deposited for the pension payments, Police Chief Luciano Cannarozzo said. But the bomb went off prematurely, he said, knocking down a wall and burying most of the money. The bandits fled in two cars with an undisclosed amount of cash.