Rain-battered hotels ask guests to vacate

As many as 270 among 350 guests who had checked into the Residency Towers at T. Nagar were unceremoniously asked to vacate.

The management failed to live up to standards and to face the calamity. This made guests to vacate in a hurry when it was raining heavily. One among them is the owner of famous textile chain outlets. Flood waters reached up to the front gate. Water also entered the basement parking. Power plants and two generator sets were submerged. Rainwater contaminated the swimming pool. There was no power and food became scarce in the hotel. There was no water in the restrooms also.

Power went off at 11.30 pm on December 2. All guests remained in darkness. There were no battery operated lamps in the emergency staircase. Though, stewards and bell boys made efforts to ease the situation, the higher management turned a blind eye.

An elderly guest said, “After hearing news about torrential rain, we booked a room in the Residency Towers. We hoped we could spend a few days in the hotel. But, the hotel had no emergency support system. There was no food and other necessary facilities.”

“The Residency Towers lacked emergency service. Food became scarce. We stayed in darkness and even emergency exit had no battery operated lamps. Suddenly, we were sent out. As there was no option, we left the place in heavy rain carrying children and elders,” he added.

When contacted a staff of the Residency Towers Hotel, denied service deficiency. He said, “Water entered into the power plants. The hotel was closed on December 5 due to the recent natural calamity and simultaneously maintenance work has been taken up. The hotel will open to offer better service from December 15.”

In another star hotel, Hilton, at Ekkaduthangal, guests were spotted on its terrace waiting for food packets to be air-dropped. At Taj Coromandel, Nungambakkam, as all the rooms were booked, the management refused people even to stay in the lobby. After heated altercations and objections, a few families stayed in the lobby. However, Rain Tree Hotel on Anna Salai, geared up to face the situation and maintained normal service. Its guests were shown more courtesy. There were also hotels like the Keys Hotel at Tiruvanmiyur that opened their doors and kitchens to stranded families.