I was lucky enough not to witness the explosions in Kampala last night but I can give a brief account of the atmosphere in the city surrounding the events.

For obvious reasons, watching the World Cup final in South Africa (the first to be held on the continent) was a strong drawcard for me. I spent two months at the start of last year in Kampala, and being in the region for other work, decided to pull my schedule forward to see the game here. Kampala is known generally as one of the safest big cities in Africa, certainly in East Africa, and many tourists find its bustling bar scene a reason to come.

Some friends I had met in the backpackers hostel were considering where to watch the match. Being a keen fan, a good local atmosphere was prized but not at the expense of a decent screen and audio system, so we chose to stay at the hostel for the match, which was actually quite full, and head out into the city after.

Information trickled in about the bombs towards the end of the match.

One of the bombs was detonated at half time and the other after 90 minutes. Of course, our information was sketchy as it was happening, and our attention was on the game. As we were considering leaving into the city to celebrate Spain’s win, word came in that venues were being closed and patrons sent home.

One of my friends who was at Iguana, a popular expat bar near the city centre, told me that Dutch embassy personal came to close the bar, under concern it may be the next target. It is unclear at this time whether expats were targeted in the explosions. The two venues hit, while big enough to receive diverse patronage, are generally considered more local than expat bars.

I’m familiar only with one of them, the Kampala Rugby Club, which I visited on my last night in the city last year. It’s a huge open-air venue with a capacity well into the thousands, very popular for watching all sporting matches, especially football. My experience was that it was generally a local, if somewhat middle-class bar. The Ethiopian Village, which I have not visited, is a similar sporting venue but with a slightly higher expat presence, as many NGOs are located in the area. This is where the American fatality occurred, along with the injured church group from Pennsylvania.

As soon as the picture emerged, people started discussing the relevance of the locations of the two bombs to the intended target.

The Ethiopian restaurant, while in Kabalagala (the suburb with by far the largest Western population) was not likely the highest-profile Western target in the area. It was likely chosen because of its Ethiopian attachment (Ethiopia has been a big supporter of the UN-backed interim government, with which al-Shabaab is at war). The football itself is also a possible reason for the targets. al-Shabaab has banned civilians under its control from watching the World Cup matches.

Locals in Kampala have been familiar with the threat from al-Shabaab, which has regularly threatened the city by name since the Ugandan army’s presence in the African Mission force in Mogadishu. It was no surprise therefore that residents the next day were quick to blame the Somalian group even before it claimed responsibility. Walking around a small market area the next morning, most people were quick to blame the Islamist group. The finding of a severed Somalian head at the rugby club increased this sentiment.

In our hostel, people were understandably hesitant to go out, with most people staying put for the day. Later Sunday night and this morning, the death toll ticked up and the extent of the devastation became apparent. The highest figure I had heard as I went to bed was in the 20s. By morning, it was 60 and at writing, 74. I am yet to go into the city itself since the incident occurred, I only hope the city’s reputation as an open and unreserved place remain intact.