The death toll from the Mali hotel attack has now climbed to 20 – in addition to the two attackers.But were it not for the actions of one man, many more people could have died.Tambara Diara is head waiter at the Blu Radisson hotel who is now a national hero.
Three days on, Tambara Diara returns to the scene to recount those horrific moments. He’d been serving breakfast when the gunmen stormed in.
“We were attacked, so I took all the clients and waiters and sent them to the back exit, then i returned i called my colleague to warn him, then i looked from the 1st floor and i saw the terrorist.” Said Tambara
The gunmen ran through the corridors, firing and many guests and staff were trapped. So when troops stormed the hotel, Diara guided the army, helping them find many guests and leading them to safety.
But for some, there was no escape, the bullet holes and the pools of dried blood are grim testimony to a massacre. Three Chinese railway executives were among the dead, they were in Mali. China is extremely important to Mali. It recently signed deals worth 11 billion dollars. Many here fear the attack may put off investors but some businessmen says they will not be chased away since ‘Terrorism is everywhere, what happened here may slow down things but it won’t withhold china’s ambitions in Mali’
Many people in Mali say Tambara Diara is a national hero but he says it was his duty to help. Now he hopes there can be peace or some kind of normality, so he can get back to his normal job.
