A flash of flame ... then blood on the walls
Explosions ripped through three luxury hotels in the capital city Colombo between 8.30am and 9am, just as guests were sitting down to breakfast. At about the same time, bombs exploded in three churches – one in Colombo, two in other cities – as worshippers gathered for Easter services. Here’s what happened:
The Cinnamon Grand
The suicide bomber queued up patiently for the five- star hotel’s breakfast buffet before mercilessly detonating his explosives.
he had checked in the night before, under the name of Mohamed Azzam Mohamed, giving a false address and saying he was there on business.
The terrorist had a plate in one hand and had just reached the front of the queue when he detonated the device, which was strapped to his back.
The hotel’s Taprobane restaurant was having one of its busiest days of the year and was packed with families.
Describing the ensuing panic, a hotel manager, who wished to remain anonymous, said: ‘It was 8.30am and it was busy. It was families. he came up to the top of the queue and set off the blast.
‘One of our managers, who was welcoming guests, was among those killed instantly. There was utter chaos, but we rushed all the injured to hospital in a very short time. About 20 people were seriously wounded and we sent them to the National hospital.’
The Shangri-La
A Mile up the coast, a London professor narrowly avoided death by going back to his hotel room for his debit card.
Kieran Arasaratnam, a director at Imperial College London’s business school, was in his room on the 18th floor when the bomb went off.
It ripped through the hotel’s Table One restaurant, on the third floor, at 9am, shortly after the Cinnamon Grand explosion. Professor Arasaratnam, 41, a Sri Lankan who moved to the UK as a refugee 30 years ago, said he heard a sound like ‘thunder’. he had initially left his room at 8.45am.
‘Something distracted me so I went back to the room to grab my debit card, opened the curtain and switched off the “do not disturb” sign… and a big blast went off,’ he said.
‘everyone just started to panic, it was total chaos. I looked to the room on the right and there’s blood everywhere.
‘everyone was running and a lot of people just didn’t know what was going on. People had blood on their shirts and there was someone carrying a girl to the ambulance. The walls and the floor were covered in blood.’
Many of the restaurant’s windows had been blown out of their panes and electrical wiring could be seen hanging from the ceiling.
The Kingsbury
Pictures showed the shattered window panels and smashed lightshades of the hotel’s Ocean restaurant, which had been serving breakfast when the blast struck.
The hotel later released a statement on its Facebook page which said: ‘ On behalf of the entire Kingsbury team we share in the shock, grief and mourning of our entire nation in the aftermath of the recent attack.
‘Medical evacuation and treatment of the injured guests and employees were handled immediately.’
The hotel said it had been ‘isolated’ for further safety checks.
St Anthony’s Shrine
The terrorist blast at the church – one of the best-known Christian sites in Colombo – was captured on a dashcam video.
The shocking footage, posted online, shows vehicles travelling along St Anthony’s Street in the Kochchikade district alongside the city’s port. As the towers of St Anthony’s Shrine come into view, seen from the south, a huge plume of grey dust and debris is sent shooting into the air.
There is also a brief flash of orange flame. A column of smoke continues to rise far above the church towers.
As onlookers stare in the direction of the church, cars, tuk-tuks, mopeds and other vehicles turn around and begin to drive away from the disaster scene.
A shopkeeper who rushed in to help described a ‘river of blood’.
Witnesses later said bodies were left strewn across the floor of the church, covered in patterned scarves and white sheets, some of them stained with blood.
Shattered roof tiles and shards of glass littered the floor, along with chunks of plaster blasted from the walls. At least 160 people were killed or injured when the bomb went off at about 8.45am, as they celebrated easter Sunday mass.
N. A. Sumanapala, a shopkeeper who works near the church and ran inside to help, said: ‘It was a river of blood. Ash was falling like snow.’ A statue of the
Virgin Mary lay smashed on the ground next to bodies covered by clothing.
St Sebastian’s Church
At least 62 were killed at this Roman Catholic church in Negombo, a city on the west coast where – unlike most of Sri Lanka – Christians form a majority. Pictures of the aftermath of the blast show a statue of Christ splattered with blood and pockmarked by shrapnel. Dismembered bodies lay on the ground partly covered by tiles which had fallen from the roof.
Many of the pews were wrecked and the church’s white floor was marked with blood.
the church posted a message on Facebook shortly after the blast which read: ‘A bomb attack to our church, please come and help if your family members are there.’
About two thirds of Negombo’s population are Roman Catholics.
Zion Church
Simon Whitmarsh, a retired doctor from Wales, was cycling near the city of Batticaloa, on the east coast, when he saw ‘smoke billowing into the sky’. the 55-year-old former consultant, who was on holiday, said he heard a ‘big bang’ and smoke about half a mile away.
‘then we saw the ambulances, people crying, and we were told to leave the area.’
He said he went to volunteer at the local hospital but it was heavily guarded by the army. ‘By that stage, they had activated emergency protocols,’ he said.
‘the hospital was heavily guarded by the army, who were stopping most people going in.
‘All the streets around it were closed. it seemed very well organised. All i did was find someone senior to see if i could help.’
At least 27 were reportedly killed at the church.