On 14 October, the students reached the palace but were met by the king’s representative, who said that Bhumibol wanted the students to disband. As the students disbanded, the assistant director of the police ordered barricades to be formed to disperse the students in an orderly, single direction. The large size of the crowd meant many were not able to disperse and a request for another exit was refused by the police. This resulted in more unhappiness among the students. It is not clear how the violence began, but reports soon filtered in about violence against the students as the crowd became more restive. In the early morning, bombs exploded near the royal palace as police began attacking the students there. By late morning, there were acts of vandalism and violence by both sides as the situation spun out of control. The government soon brought in tanks, helicopters and soldiers to aid the police. More than a hundred students were killed and many buildings in and around Rajdamnern Avenue were set on fire as the number of demonstrators grew to more than 500,000. The soldiers finally withdrew in the evening and around 7:15 pm the king announced on television and radio that Thanom’s military government had resigned.