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| Silence engulfs Oberoi-Trident |
| Rajesh S Kurup / Mumbai Nov 30, 2008, 00:07 IST |
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An eerie silence blankets the Oberoi and Trident hotels, broken occasionally by a distant horn of a vehicle, much in contrast to the sounds of explosives and sporadic machine gun fire a day ago.
The front side of the hotel wore a deserted look with neither vehicles nor vendors, while courting couple also deciding to stay away from the Marine Drive promenade. The sea-facing side of the hotel was cordoned off a good 50 metres and the TV crew was dismantling their outdoor broadcasting equipment in a relaxed manner.
The twin towers of Oberoi-Trident had witnessed exchange of fire between the terrorists and the elite Indian commandos. The signs of a battle were not visible on the hotel, at least from the cordoned off place. While the occasional crackle of the police wireless sets were heard, there were a bunch of youngsters filming the hotel on their mobile phones.
But the other three sides of the hotel tell a harrowing tale. From a distance (again these sides were also cordoned off) one could see at least a dozen broken windows. The holes in the glass panes were in different shapes and sizes, and one ominously in the shape of a human plastered onto a wall.
The 300-odd room hotel bore the burnt of terrorist mainly on the fourth, sixth, seventh and eight floor, according to a staff, who was waiting along with the policemen outside the hotel.
Now, the porch of the hotel is lined with three police vehicles. Last evening, after the eviction of the terrorists, there were ambulances and hearse vans, the staff said, adding, the lobby of the Oberoi (right tower) was heaped with debris.
A police officer confirms this, but adds that the debris is of broken furniture and glass, “no ammunition no bullets, the hotel has been sanitised”. However, he does not let anyone in, unless you were a guest with the hotel.
At around 4.30 pm on Saturday, guests started coming back to the hotel that now has a gutted lobby, littered with glass pieces, a revolving door without glasses and a lift that does not work. The guests had earlier checked into the hotel but had gone out to attend parties or business meetings at the time of the attack.
Shashi Kapoor, a textile retailer, recounted his story of escape through the kitchen and to the back entrance of the hotel as guns were blazing in the lobby. The hotel staff, with a great presence of mind, had closed the restaurant doors preventing the terrorists’ entry into the eatery.
There are bullet marks all around, he said, adding, “I was fortunate enough to survive.”
Later two foreign tourists also came to the spot, collected their luggage that was intact in their rooms. “Passports were also left behind,” a lady declining to identify said.
Meanwhile, a group of foreign media landed at the spot. “We were flying at the time of the attack, and missed the action,” a photographer identified only as David said. He further added he had flown in from London this evening, and came to field after the battle was over.
Business was not usual in the milieu. Most of the shops at Cr2, the famous mall behind Oberoi, remained closed, even though Inox Theatre at the complex was functioning. And the theatre was empty.
Many of the offices at nearby Maker Chambers, Sakar Bhavan, NCPA and Express Towers remained shut. One of the security guards shoed away the courier boy, asking him to return with the parcel again on Monday.
The empty roads led to the Churchgate Station, which was relatively empty. However, it was speck and clean unlike normal days. Not a piece of paper on the platform, even though the dustbins were removes fearing terrorists planting bombs in them.
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