The Guardian has published the following account of Harry's son and girlfriend's ordeal in Mumbai. It is incredibly harrowing reading and even worse than I thought.
For Will Pike and his girlfriend, Kelly Doyle, a night in the Taj Mahal hotel was meant to be a treat to round off a two-week holiday in India.
Instead it ended with Will, 28, lying in a Mumbai hospital intensive care bed, his back broken in an attempt to escape the bullets and choking smoke by climbing down an improvised rope made from bedsheets, curtains and hotel towels.
They had checked in at 6pm after arriving from Goa, ventured out to the Leopold café - later to become the first place in the city to be attacked - then returned to their room intending to go down to the bar. As they got ready, the sound of explosions echoed up from the lobby: the terrorists were bursting into the hotel, throwing grenades and firing automatic weapons.
For five hours, the couple, from Camden in north London, cowered in their room, listening to the sound of approaching gunshots while the terrorists roamed the corridors, apparently firing at their fellow hostages.
8 comments:
Poor Will - he is indeed very seriously injured, but he still managed some gentle humor, which is remarkable. I hope Harry can bring him home as soon as it's safe for him to travel.
How awful..from the account I can just feel Will's feeling his life peeling away as he fell. I'm not a religious person and do not believe in luck but he is one lucky guy as is his girlfrield. If the fire crew had not arrived, what would have happened to her? These are two people who probably are in a great deal of psychic as well as physical pain right now but who at least have one another still.
What an unbelievable ordeal. I wonder if I would even have the sang froid to consider the sheet thing from 60 feet up if my life were on the line.
I'm glad to hear that they are alive. Let the healing begin.
What a wrenching story. My continued good thoughts are with Will, Kelly, and Harry.
I thought that something like this only happens in movies! Strength to Will and his near ones,
Horrible situations like this leave us wondering what on earth we can do to help. I do hope governments or aid agencies can get in and do whatever is humanly possible to assist in the recovery and rehabilitation of the wounded.
And while the dead can never be replaced in human terms, hope that the loss of family breadwinners does not throw survivors into penury as well as grief.
Yes, I read this and was shocked - the whole thing is just beyond words.
Love to all.
Those poor people.
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