No cause for alarm

Being woken up at 4.45am on a day off is not a laughing matter

I've just returned from a couple of days off, but I thought I would share my wonderful experiences after the last CRN Business Club.

Every event has been dogged with problems from the volcanic ash cloud earlier this year to the heavy snow and freezing temperatures of the past few days.

But despite all the setbacks we have always had a great turnout and people literally battled the elements to make our last dinner.

I was lucky enough to be put up in a hotel last week (or so I thought), but I was rudely awakened at 4.45 last Friday morning by a fire alarm.

Now at work when the fire alarm goes off, we all stand there wondering whether we should actually drag our behinds out the door and then ever so slowly we actually make our way downstairs. It is quite comical. God help us if there ever was a fire.

However I always thought that if I was in a strange place and the alarm went off - I would actually react with more urgency.

Wrong.

The alarm went off - I awoke with a start and my fuddled brain didn't actually register where I was. I grabbed the nearest item of clothing (a scarf) and ventured out into the corridor, expecting people to be dashing about all over the place.

In fact they were standing outside their doors, just looking at the fire escape. We all stood there as the piercing sound of the alarm penetrated every pore. It was a sound I will never forget!

We couldn't smell smoke, so decided that it MUST be a false alarm.

Eventually someone decided to go downstairs and 'see what was happening' - only for the alarm to stop and a hassled hotel employee to tell everyone it was a false alarm and to go back to bed. But if it does go off again - evacuate, he said.

I had just got back to sleep when off it went again. This time I was ready for it - I threw on every item of clothing I had over my pjs, along with boots and my coat and dashed down the stairs into the reception, clutching my bag with my heart pounding.

We all stood there, a sorry group of bedraggled looking guests in pyjamas, coats and shoes.

Half an hour later we were allowed back upstairs, with a firm 'the problem has been sorted now - apologies for the inconvenience' statement from the staff.

We all trudged back upstairs and I sank back into bed in a state of heightened alert. I had just dozed off, when, yep, you've guessed it - the bloody alarm went off again.

Out we all went into the corridor again, just as it stopped.

This happened three more times before I decided to have a shower and get the hell out of there. I was jumpy, nervous and a woman on the edge.

I was at St Pancras station at 7.15am - the earliest I've ever been there!

Some start to a day off!