(Trinidad Express) – Summit officials along with accredited delegates and media were forced to evacuate the National Secretariat’s headquarters, at the new International Waterfront Centre, when a fire alarm was triggered by generators, following a power outage at the building yesterday.
The incident occurred three days before United States President Barack Obama and 33 other Heads of State/Government are scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the Fifth Summit of the Americas, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, in Port of Spain.
The Express was speaking to a member of the Secretariat on the 3rd Floor of Tower C, when around 4.50 p.m., there was a power outage. Several minutes later the faint sound of an alarm was heard.
Those who heard the alarm-which blared on three of the lower floors of the 26-storey building-immediately headed towards the staircases while security alerted the others to evacuate.
People were seen walking swiftly down the two stair wells in a bid to get to the outdoor courtyard, which is located in the same compound as the Hyatt Regency Hotel.
Several police, soldiers and fire officers attached to the National Secretariat started entering the building while others remained outdoors to manage the growing crowd and vehicular traffic.
As the crowd grew thicker, many confused faces were seen. Even some members of the security forces were not aware of what had happened.
Several ministers, including Health Minister Jerry Narace, Tourism Minister Joseph Ross, Public Utilities Minister Mustapha Abdul-Hamid and Social Development Minister Dr Amery Browne, were even seen walking around. American Ambassador to the Organisation of American States (OAS) Hector Morales was also present at the time.
