Reporters crowded the accessible areas near the crime scene. One restaurant on Newbury Street—Stephanie’s on Newbury—attracted a multitude of cameramen straining to capture photographs of a patio of dirty tables with plates full of half-consumed meals, untouched since Monday afternoon, when restaurant patrons and staffers fled the bombs.

Even the streets that weren’t barricaded—and which would usually be busy during the Tuesday morning commute—were largely deserted, with the exception of the media. Scores of television relay trucks clustered around Boston Common, and also congregated on Commonwealth Avenue between Dartmouth and Exeter Streets.

By Tuesday evening, the names of two of the three victims who have died so far as a result of the explosions had been released. Martin Richard, 8, from Dorchester was watching his father, William Richard, finish the race when the bombs blew; his sister and mother are still recovering from serious injuries, though his brother was unharmed in the blast. Krystle Campbell, 29, a former Harvard employee and relative of two Harvard University staff members, was described by family members as a loyal fan of the marathon.

The third victim has not yet been identified, though she is believed to have been a Chinese national.

Another media briefing is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. President Barack Obama will visit Boston on Thursday morning and will attend an interfaith service at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.

—Staff writer Matthew Q. Clarida can be reached at clarida@college.harvard.edu. Follow him on Twitter @MattClarida.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

CORRECTION: April 17, 2013

An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the location of the restaurant Stephanie’s on Newbury. In fact, the restaurant is on Newbury Street, not Commonwealth Avenue.