Russia Beefs up Security After Bombings Kill 31 Russian authorities ordered police to beef up security at train stations and other facilities across the country after a suicide bomber killed 14 people on a bus Monday in the southern city of Volgograd. It was the second deadly attack in two days on the city that lies just 400 miles (650 kilometers) from the site of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Russian authorities said they believe the latest attack was the work of the same group that set off a deadly bomb Sunday at Volgograd's main railway station. Together, at least 31 people were killed in the two explosions, putting the city of 1 million on edge and highlighting the terrorist threat that Russia faces as it prepares to host February's Winter Games in Sochi. While terrorists may find it hard to get into tightly guarded Olympic facilities, the bombings have shown they can hit civilian targets elsewhere in Russia with shocking ease. The heightened security comes as Russians are preparing to celebrate the New Year, the nation's main holiday. In St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, the local governor canceled a New Year's fireworks show. President Vladimir Putin summoned officials to report on the attacks and sent Alexander Bortnikov, the head of the Federal Security Service, the main KGB successor agency, to Volgograd to oversee the probe. The Sochi Olympics are Putin's pet project. After meeting with security officials in Volgograd, Bortnikov voiced confidence that officials will quickly find who was responsible for the attacks. Volgograd, northeast of Sochi, serves as a key transport hub for southern Russia, with numerous bus routes linking it to volatile provinces in Russia's North Caucasus, where insurgents have been seeking an Islamic state. Vladimir Markin, the spokesman for Russia's main investigative agency, said Monday's explosion involved a bomb similar to the one used in Sunday's attack. Markin said a suicide bomber was responsible for the bus explosion, reversing an earlier statement that the blast was caused by a bomb left behind. At least 14 people were killed Monday and nearly 30 were wounded, according to public health officials. It was not clear if the dead included the bomber. Seventeen people died in Sunday's suicide bombing, including the bomber, authorities said. No one has claimed responsibility for either bombing, but they came several months after Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov threatened new attacks against civilian targets in Russia, including the Olympics. Volgograd, formerly called Stalingrad, also serves as an important symbol of Russian pride because of the historic World War II battle in which the Soviets turned the tide against the Nazis. "Volgograd, a symbol of Russia's suffering and victory in World War II, has been singled out by the terrorist leaders precisely because of its status in people's minds," Dmitry Trenin, the head of the Carnegie Endowment's Moscow office, wrote on the organization's website. Monday's explosion ripped away much of the bus's exterior and shattered windows in nearby buildings. It paralyzed public transport in the city, forcing many residents to walk long distances to get to work. Police quickly dispersed a few dozen people who attempted to hold an unsanctioned ceremony to commemorate the victims.