Over 150 people were reportedly killed and over 300 injured as simultaneous blasts hit churches, hotels and frequented by tourists in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday.
Kollywood actress Radikaa Sarathkumar, who was staying at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel - one of the four hotels where the blasts happened - had a narrow escape. Radikaa said that she left Cinnamon Grand Hotel just before it was bombed.
The veteran star took to Twitter and said, "OMG bomb blasts in Sri Lanka, god be with all. I just left Colombo Cinnamon Grand Hotel and it has been bombed, can’t believe this shocking."
The blasts occurred took place around 8.45 a.m.(local time) as the Easter Sunday masses were in progress in churches, police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said.
Three churches - St Anthony's Church in Colombo, St Sebastian's Church in the western coastal town of Negombo and another church in the eastern town of Batticaloa - were targeted, police said.
The explosions were also reported from the five-star hotels, the Shangrila, the Cinnamon Grand and the Kingsbury. Photos circulating on social media showed the roof of one church had been almost blown off in the blast.
The floor was littered with a mixture of roof tiles, splintered wood and blood. Foreigners and locals who were injured in hotel blasts were admitted to the Colombo General Hospital.
"Many casualties including foreigners," said Harsha de Silva, the Minister of Economic Reforms and Public Distribution.
"Horrible scenes. I saw many body parts strewn all over. Emergency crews are at all locations in full force. We, at 1990 also have close to 20 units at various locations. We took multiple casualties to hospital. Hopefully saved many lives," added de Silva.
No group has claimed responsibility for Sunday's attacks.