TWO GRENADE ATTACKS IN MOMBASA COMPOUND WORRIES FOR TOURISM SECTOR
(Posted 03rd May 2014)
At least four people were killed according to reliable information received from Mombasa, when an explosive device, thought to be a grenade, was thrown at a bus while passengers boarded the vehicle.
The explosion on the bus occurred at Mwembe Tayari in Mombasa and those injured were taken to local hospitals in Mombasa for treatment. It could not at this stage be confirmed if the grenade thrower was among those killed in the blast.
A second device did reportedly go off near a beach resort north of the city but with no injuries reported at this time.
Though information is sketchy it was reported that a suspicious looking bag was left near the main gate of the resort and when spotted did security personnel and employees take cover as it exploded.
For visitors to the hotel it was a close shave and happy escape. Tourism stakeholders have attributed the lack of casualties in the second blast to security measures taken be beach resorts, something witnessed during a just concluded visit to the Kenya coast, where every vehicle and pedestrian is now screened as a deterrent before being allowed to enter a resort complex.
‘This could not have come at a worse time’ said one of the regular coast based sources before adding ‘Business is bad as it is and this will not help us when we mention that Kenya is safe. We know that these are isolated incidents but the fact that these terrorists tried a resort hotel as a target has all our alarm bells ringing. We just hope that our new marketing drive will not find it hard to explain the real situation on the ground but everyone who pays a lot of money wants to be in safe hands. Telling something when the situation is really different, is just bad practice’.
Other sources laid into the social media scene as shortly after the blasts took place Tweets went out telling as a matter of fact that one of the devices went off inside the resort and it took senior stakeholders like Mohammed Hersi, Chairman of the Mombasa and Coast Tourism Association to go repeatedly on record that 1) two blasts took place and 2) none of those took place inside a resort nor were there any injuries among staff and guests.
Similar attacks have in the past been attributed to Al Shabab sympathizers and operatives who made their way to Mombasa and while no one at this time has claimed responsibility it is almost certain that the same groups were behind this latest incident, aimed to create despondency and a crisis mood among the local population while keeping the tourists away.
Police and other security organs are presently combing the city for suspects and to also give the local communities some sense of comfort that indeed all humanly possible is being done to protect tourists and the wananchi alike.
Watch this space for updates, as and when more information has been received.
