A 37 year-old British woman who claimed to have suffered an electric shock while staying at Adaaran Club Rannalhi in September 2010 is taking legal action against the resort, reports the South Wales Echo.
Amanda Llewellyn-Pace, who was visiting the resort from Cardiff with her husband Rhodri for their fourth wedding anniversary, claimed she was “nearly killed” crossing a bridge at Rannalhi when seawater lapping across it came into contact with exposed wiring.
Llewellyn-Pace told the Echo that she was flung onto her back by the jolt and had to be rescued by her husband, who was wearing rubber-soled shoes.
Her husband, a London-based quantity surveyor, said that “hotel staff were sniggering, and this was at a so-called four-star hotel.”
According to the Echo, Llewellyn-Pace was returning from a snorkelling trip when she crossed the two-metre wide bridge in bare feet. She told the newspaper that the bridge became live whenever a wave crossed it due to loose wiring in the circuit used to light the walkway.
“My legs felt like they were in a clamp, like something was grabbing my legs. Obviously nothing was,” she said, claiming she was still on painkillers and having physiotherapy six months after the incident.
An assistant manager at the resort confirmed that the management was aware of the matter and that the couple were taking legal action.
“It was a very rainy day and there was some work going on [to the bridge],” the assistant manager said, adding that there had been signage boards in place and that the work was not electrical, but due to a broken wooden area of the bridge.
“There was no evidence [of the electric shock] and there were no eyewitnesses,” the assistant manager said. The guests had informed the front office of the incident but declined to be taken to a doctor, the resort said.
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Deny Deny Deny Deny is always best - it always works. It wasnt us it was them that shocked themselves nearly to death. We Deny Deny Deny. Excellent public relations from backward maldives resort managers!
JJ robinson, what is your real intent here? is it to portray maldivians as uncouth, uncivilised and inhuman? do we need to be under the British Raj again? you blatant anti maldivian articles are really pissing me off. or should all stupid maldivians hand over the tourism industry to the great british people? why dont you do an article on how they practice apartheid in these resorts and treat maldivians like crap? how they break the law by not even having a contract with the maldivian staff sometimes?
What do you mean deny clearly the management offered to take them to a doctor and they declined. This might be just a case of free holiday syndrome.
typical Maldivians bastards unfortunately. They should be sued their asses off.
Electron does not know to identify you as a white British woman or a Maldivian. This is an accident elctric shocks happens every where in the world. Whats the big deal, these while nonsense, we are fed up of allegations after allegations.
I totally agree to the fact that most Maldivians are very careless about safety issues.
Just yesterday, I happened to be at Fresh & Green to buy some exotic flowering plant seeds for my terrace.
After the long selection process and having paid to my stuffs I stepped outside for a soft drink & a smoke break (it was an extremely hot day).
I standing opposite to Fresh & Green and suddenly my mind was working on a new cafe just next to the shop (the place was on 1st floor).
It only took me a few seconds (despite my thirst and tiredness) to notice that the safety issues of the newly built balcony railing.
The architect (if that was a real one or not) surely had missed to consult with a civil engineer. The railing was of pinewood and with inadequately lesser thickness to support the weight of a couple of 65+ kilo people.
Question is what would the smart-a##ses with rubbish comments say if a person falls onto the payment below? Was is the stupidity of the poor guy or the owner of the cafe'?
Sue them and sue them well!
@ Dhivehi-lay. Why are you shooting the messenger? The author of this report is merely telling us something that happened, or something that someone alleges happened.
There is no commentary, just straight reporting. Hard to see why someone's blood is boiling at its 'anti-Maldivianness'.
it is true that Maldivians are getting a rough deal in the resorts. we should try and remedy that. But this article is about something else - how is keeping this type of behaviour a secret going to help get resort workers gain their rights??
Attacking the author personally and implying - i suppose on the basis of his name - that he is a secret British agent who wants to help Britain resurrect its glorious empire days is precisely the type of xenophobic thinking that motivates the sort of behaviour that Llewellyn-Pace is alleging we indulged in.
Shame that you have to go and call yourself Dhivehi-lay. You don't speak for the Dhivehin I would like to see in this country.
"Her husband, a London-based quantity surveyor, said that “hotel staff were sniggering, and this was at a so-called four-star hotel.”
See, that's the problem right there. This wouldn't have happened in a five-star hotel.
@Mithra..
How sad that the Maldivian Land belongs to us Maldivians? You guys are feeling so bad and devastated to see that we have such a beautiful land with so many humans (not animals and bastards ONLY).
You must be feeling jealous to see that we are progressing and the opportunities here to gain a better life is tremendous compared to your poor nation??
What are you doing here among these Maldivian BASTARDS?? Why dont you stay home? who needs you BASTARD in here?
Watch your mouth
Negligence is unacceptable when customers pay through their nose for the services.
However, Europeans i have noticed demand perfect services from Asian and other so-called 3rd World countries, but do not bother to reciprocate the same. Moreover, i have myself been in a hotel in central London and paid over 80 British Pounds fr a crappy room with attached toilet but nothing except a towel. I had to go out again and buy shampoo, soap, etc.
@Mithra
We are better people.
cheers
Obviously there are two stories here.
1. One is the allegation of poor electrical wiring at the jetty and poor maintenance exposing guests and staff to danger. At this point in time this is an allegation yet to be proved.
2. The second allegation is about the totally unacceptable attitude of staff and management ie: the allegation of "sniggering" against the victim when the incident occurred.
Naturally the guests are equally angry about the attitude of the staff when the accident occurred. But reading deep in to the article one can see that the head line is based on "the sniggering" and not the "electrical shock" itself. Why? Because the media in this case has picked on a raw nerve here.
Remember the infamous "Vilu Reef story" about the attitude of staff? Now here again we see an attempt to high light the "attitude of the staff" instead of covering the accident itself. Now I am not being judgmental here. Maybe this is how the media works in trying to sensationalize stories.
But what I don't understand is why nobody has bothered to mention that this is NOT A RESORT OWNED OR MANAGED BY MALDIVIANS. IT IS A SRI LANKAN OWNED AND MANAGED RESORT! This resort belongs to the Aitken Spence Group of Sri Lanka and most of the staff are probably Sri Lankans.
And from the what we hear of the kind of management in the resorts managed by them in the Maldives, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the allegations are indeed true.
So ladies and gentlemen! Sue the Sri Lankans!
@Hynythun. You must understand that the average british tourist who comes to the Maldives has been saving money for that holiday for many years. Esp in the case of young honeymoon couple. What is wrong they expect their holiday of lifetime to be perfect. Even if its not perfect - they dont expect to be electrocuted (even by mistake) then sniggered at by childish employees. If you have made a mistake admit it and apologise - if hotel staff had done this to the couple then most probably this wouldn't become a problem. I doubt they will return to the Maldives and I doubt their friends will. Pull your head out of the sand man!
"do we need to be under the British Raj again". dhivehi-ley, you uncouth, uncivilised ignoramus, go and take a lesson in your own history. You were never under the British Raj in the first place.
The Resorts are responsible for the safety of their guests. When the lady was in need of help, the staff should have helped the couple instead of sniggering at them. Their behaviour is unacceptable. The victim was a "lady" and at pain. The staff responsible for causing this anguish to the guests should immediately be dismissed.
Wine and pork lover: of course i know technically maldives was a british protectrorate, its in the beginning of every book/ article about maldives.you've clearly missed the irony.
as many have pointed out, there may have been a safety issue, but JJ robbinson, like in most of his articles has clearly chosen to concentrate on the "alleged" "sniggering"
my point is bit beyond an isolated incidence in a resort, but perhaps too much pork and wine has clouded ones perception.
my beef is with JJ Robbinson and generally the anti maldivian tone and pro european tone of minivan articles generally.
added to this, the governments eagerness to appoint british people to all sorts of "advisory" positions.
Some of them plan to sue even before they come. That's how these guys generate cash for next holidays. By coincidence it mostly they happen to be from the same place.
@Dhivehi-ley. News is news. Maybe you prefer not to have news as it is - maybe you prefer news with 50% fact? Get used to a free news - its seems its hear to stay - and if you dont like reality news go stick your head back in the sand. You paranoid xenophobic schizo.
@Cedric. who cares if they return to Maldives or not? if u have anything. better than a monkey brain it wouldn't be that difficult to comprehend 90% of tourists do not return to Maldives even if they enjoyed their holiday. this maybe something new to you but we who work in this industry face tourists who fabricate such stories and threaten resorts to get their money back. and when such threats are ignored they will most of the time write lies on tripsdvisor. go find it yourself. just because minivan and you want to make this such a dramatic story we don't.
"@Cedric. who cares if they return to Maldives or not?" -fehurihi
You should.
You'd be stuck in a starving third world nation if they stopped coming back.
No more coffees.
No more bike driving.
No more fancy dinners.
Think about it for a moment. Yes, I know thinking is a crime to some Maldivians - but just do it.
Cedric,
from the sound of ur name, u appear to be a foreigner, so i can excuse your ignorance at some of the issues facing maldivians. i have experienced what xenophobia is on the streets of england, having been spit upon, called a "paki" and physically threatened, equally some of the kindest and decent people i met were also from england. people are people, i embrace the values of all cultures, i dont believe white people or maldivians are better or less than any other race. However, i do protest these arbitrary appointments of random eruropeans by this government to high level decision making positions. for instance, Farahaz Faisal is the ambassador of maldives in the UK, why the heck do we need to spend from our coffers to David Hardingam, appointed as high commissioner or special enjoy or whatever? i would rather that money went to permanet economics teacher at CHCE, where currently they have employed a student in malaysia to teach economics on line to CHSC students
and Cedric,
call me what u will, but we are not all grass wearing stupid natives stuck in the days when we believe we are lesser than anyone who speak or writes fluent english. garbage is garbage, even if all the grammer is correct, and some of us can see through the sensationalised headlines, to the hidden agendas
This resort is always having complaints about the staff. Sad to say usually sleazy Maldivians their behaviour and what they do, if they just laughed at her she should consider herself lucky. A lot worse happens there and the management know about it and don't care so long as guests keep paying lots for crap service.
If people don't want come to Maldives they won't, then where will we be, no job no money and a bad reputation.
Ilyas Ahmed I agree-the point is this resort is owned by Sri Lankans, sue them