Seamen caught in hotel fire trained to handle the heat

TNP PHOTO: Benjamin Seetor

Seamen of many years and trained for emergencies, they were prepared when smoke started to engulf the East Village Hotel on Marine Parade Road on Monday.

They made their way down from the 10th and ninth storeys and, when apparently trapped on the fourth storey, managed to find a path to a scaffolding and descended its ladders down to safety.

But throughout their escape, what surprised them was that the hotel staff did not seem quite as prepared.