Three separate blasts have hit Rangoon during the annual water festival, killing at least nine and injuring 75.

The blasts occurred near to Kandawgyi Lake, where hundreds of people were celebrating the festival, known in Burmese as Thingyan. State media in Burma announced the incident but unusually did not point the blame at anyone. Past blasts have often been attributed to ethnic opposition armies.

“We have seen at least 50 wounded people taken to hospital and nine people died,” a witness at Rangoon General Hospital told Reuters, although subsequent reports have said that 75 were wounded.

Three loud explosions were heard at a pavilion near to the lake – most of the pavilions on U Htaungbo Road alongside the lake are run by companies close to the authorities.

“Some people were wounded but we are not in a position to give you further detailed information since necessary investigations are still in progress,” police told Reuters.