Sri Lankan troops fired anti-aircraft guns in the capital early Sunday amid reports that Tamil Tiger rebels had entered the city's airspace.
COLOMBO: Sri Lankan troops fired anti-aircraft guns in the capital early on Sunday, amid reports that Tamil Tiger rebels had entered the city's airspace.
Troops manning key positions in the capital lit up the night sky with a massive barrage of anti-aircraft fire that shook homes and caused panic, residents said.
Security forces fired tracer bullets into the air and officials said military units at key power stations, oil storage facilities, a domestic airport and the city centre opened fire with high-calibre anti-aircraft guns.
There was a second burst of firing 75 minutes later, when authorities said they suspected the rebel aircraft was still within the capital's air space.
A Shell building in the capital caught fire after the attack, an official with the energy group said.
"There has been some explosion and we don't know the extent of damage," said Shell Gas's media manager, Chamani Herath Pathirage.
Fire engines were rushed to the scene after reports that three buildings had been hit, but there were no reports of gas storage tanks being affected.
Sri Lankan forces have been on high alert since the Tigers, whose drawn-out campaign for an independent state for the island's ethnic Tamil minority has left more than 60,000 people dead, carried out their first aerial strike last month.
Authorities responded to reports of approaching rebel planes by switching off the electricity supply to the capital as millions of Sri Lankans watched their side play Australia in the cricket World Cup final.
"We are doing a search and that is why you are experiencing a power cut," air force spokesman Ajantha Silva said. He said he had no information about Tiger aircraft.
The power was restored about an hour later, but the anti-aircraft fire continued. Firemen were rushed to a suburb of the capital where residents reported a fire near a fuel storage facility.
It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze, but residents said at least three buildings had been damaged although the storage tanks appeared to be intact.
Sri Lankan ordered a similar blackout on Thursday after radar spotted unidentified aircraft within the air space of the island's only international airport, prompting authorities to close it temporarily.
The power outage came at a critical time for Sri Lanka's cricket fans, with more than 14 million of the island's 19.5 million population expected to watch the live broadcast of the finals in Barbados.
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