[Margaret Pilkington]

I have been on Robinsons Tours too, though never to this particular hotel.

I was with my Mum in Shanklin earlier this year. it was a tour that was mainly populated by the older people....some deaf and one man totally blind and on his own...... afew days into the holiday the fire alarm was activated in the very early hours of the morning......we were on the second floor despite the fact that Ma uses a wheel chair........I got Ma and the blind gentleman downstairs and to the assembly point, to find that we were the only guests who had got out of bed....there were 3 staff and the duty manager. The fire brigade came and told us we could all go back to bed.
The alarm went off twice more and we followed the same procedure.
When we got down to breakfast the following morning and mentioned that we had been up 3 times for the fire alarm......many of the elderly guests had taken sleeping pills and had not heard any of the alarms and the ones that did, said that because they couldn't smell smoke or see any evidence of fire, they stayed in bed. I do believe that at the start of a holiday the hotel staff should tell guests what to do if they hear the alarm...and find out which guests need assistance in case of an incident. These guests should then have something like a 'do not disturb sign'....but with some sign that indicates that they require assistance in the case of an emergency....to hang on the door knob outside their room. I know that all rooms have a note on the back of the door about what to do in a fire.......but how many people think it is something that only happens to other people?

Having worked in hospital and been a fire warden I could never ignore the fire alarm, and call me boring, but where ever we go I mentally plan an escape route should there ever be a need to use it.....this was something that was drummed into me by the fire officer at the hospital (thanks Phil)...it is even more important to me with having to help Ma.