Gas explosion at five-star London hotel
Four people were hospitalised after a gas explosion at the Hyatt Regency Hotel – The Churchill, in London, at midnight on Saturday.
Around 500 guests were evacuated from the five-star hotel in Portman Square after the explosion in the basement, which caused part of the building to collapse.
The hotel said no guests were injured, but several staff sustained injuries, four of whom were treated at area hospitals. Another nine were treated at the scene for minor injuries.
"We are currently working to provide guests with accommodation and are cooperating with local authorities to determine the extent of the damage at the hotel and to understand the cause of the incident," the hotel said in a statement.
"The hotel is currently closed as those efforts continue. We apologise for the inconvenience to our guests and those with upcoming reservations at the hotel, and are grateful to the hotel staff and local authorities who are providing assistance at the site."
It said guests scheduled to arrive on November 22-23, 2014 should proceed to the next door Radisson Blu, where Hyatt will arrange alternate accommodation.
Guests with arrival dates through November 30 will be contacted by the hotel’s guest relations team to arrange alternate accommodation, while those due to arrive on December 1 or later will be notified of any changes after an assessment of the hotel early next week.
The hotel said guests with reservations for any date may cancel at no charge if they wish to arrange for their own alternate accommodation.
Guests with questions or upcoming reservations should call 866-816-3868 or tweet @HyattConcierge.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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