Pointe Séréne (Mbour), January 21 (APS) – The Riu Baobab hotel is returning to normal life, the day after the attack it suffered during the night from Saturday to Sunday, by an armed gang, taking with him in his flight more than 12 million CFA francs, noted the APS.
Around twenty people armed with hunting rifles entered this weekend into this hotel reception, located in Pointe Séréne, in the Mbour department.
After exchanges of fire with the gendarmes, who came to the rescue, the bandits fled, with money which they took from the hotel reception.
This parenthesis quickly closed, giving way to the daily routine of a receptive located in an area of great promotion of seaside tourism.
“It’s an unfortunate event that we all experienced. But now everything is back to normal. We are continuing our activities quietly. Customers are arriving and those who have to leave are leaving,” the hotel’s human resources director, Ramatoulaye Mbacké, told APS.
“The event had no impact on the normal operation of the hotel. We continue to operate quietly and receive customers,” specifies Ms. Mbacké.
“There, we are receiving a group of 141 people of English nationality,” explains the manager, while several tourists, who have just gotten off a bus from the Blaise de Diagne international airport, were busy at the usual formalities at reception, Monday, shortly after 8 p.m.
Sunday, the day after the attack, “we received 180 entries all day and today [lundi]we had 163,” she reports, adding that “more than 300 visitors have been received in the hotel since the incident.”
Inside the hotel, just after the gate, heavily armed gendarmerie elements are keeping watch.
-“The gendarmerie has been present 24 hours a day since the day of the incident. The situation is under control, calm and serenity currently reign in the hotel and among customers and staff,” rejoices Ramatoulaye Mbacké.
In the main restaurant of the site, a beautiful atmosphere reigns around copious and diverse dishes.
“It’s dinner time!” », says Ms Mbacké, during a guided tour inside the hotel, while waiters go around the tables where around a hundred customers are patiently waiting to be served.
“You saw the atmosphere in the hotel. It looks like nothing ever happened,” notes the HR manager, after a tour of a second refectory, which offers a similar decor.
“There were certainly fears and that is very normal. It is understandable that customers have sent emails to inquire about the situation regarding security and the necessary measures taken so that they can come,” she admits.
Sunday evening, the Minister of Tourism and Crafts, Mountaga Diao, at the head of a large delegation, visited the site. A visit during which he announced measures, including in particular the erection of a gendarmerie brigade, to strengthen security in the tourist resort of Pointe Séréne.
“We welcome this announcement with great pleasure. We expect this brigade to be put in place as soon as possible. We hope that this will address all the security concerns we have,” reacts the human resources manager. She says she is confident about the outcome of the investigation opened by the gendarmerie.
DOB/ADI/BK/ASG
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