Ariana Grande’s drummer describes terrifying moment Manchester bomb went off

ARIANA Grande’s drummer has described the moment the bomb went off after the concert, saying the “heartbreak” will live with him forever.

ARIANA Grande’s drummer has spoken about the terrifying moment the Manchester suicide bomb detonated as they made their way back to their dressing room after the show.

The bomber, named today as UK-born Salman Abedi, killed 22 and maimed 59 as thousands of fans left the Manchester Arena on Monday night.

Aaron Spears took to Instagram after the attack to describe the “heartbreaking” moment they realised a bomb had gone off in the venue, saying the “painful memory will live with us all forever”, The Sun reports.

Thousands of adults, teenagers and children screamed and fled in panic after a huge bomb was detonated — thought to be packed with nails and bolts — just as Ariana’s concert ended.

Spears said the band were all safe and were evacuated within seconds of the bomb going off.

He said: “We finished the show and we were walking back to our dressing rooms and BOOM!!!

“We could hear people, we had no idea what it was ... there was all kinds of speculation as to what was going on.

“Like 5 minutes after getting to the room, security came in and informed us that we had to evacuate the building immediately.

“It was then that we realised this was serious. Initially we thought that the sound was all kinds of things but it didn’t hit that this was a bomb until we were evacuated and they told us exactly what was going on.

“It’s so heartbreaking because so many little ones attend our shows ... I just keep thinking about them.

While Grande and the band were all safe, Spears said they had been psychologically scarred by the attack.

He added: “I’m extremely thankful that no one on the touring crew was physically hurt but this painful memory will live with us all forever. I’m still just in disbelief ... It’s so surreal.”

In the wake of the attack, Grande has decided to cancel her gigs in London later this week, and has put her entire European tour on hold, according to TMZ.

A representative from the singer’s label confirmed the 23-year-old was “okay”, although was reportedly left “in hysterics” following the bombing.

She also posted an emotional message to her Twitter saying: “Broken from the bottom of my heart, I am so so sorry. I don’t have words.”

This story originally appeared in The Sun and is republished here with permission.

Originally published as Ariana Grande’s drummer describes terrifying moment Manchester bomb went off