7 News Belize

“What Happened In Miami?”
posted (June 28, 2010)
What happened in Miami?" That's a question we heard more than a lot on Saturday night after LOVE FM had a report called in from the Miami Beach Hotel.

The report was that at about 9:00, the Prime Minister was addressing a formal gathering of Belizean Americans when he had to stop right in the middle of his speech and be whisked away by the US Secret Service because of an urgent security concern. The alarm was that first - a dead man was found on the tenth floor of the hotel and second, that there was some unknown, possibly toxic gas in the hotel's ventilation system.

A dead man? And toxic gas? Well that sure sounded like a massive attack and Belizeans, already in a state of sustained anxiety at the super-heated nothingness of Tropical Storm Alex, were worried. Had someone tried to harm the PM? All the way in Miami?

No such thing.

There was no direct threat on the prime minister; it was a just a precaution for a visiting head of state. The homicide was just a coincidence, and there was no toxic gas; that was a false alarm. Still, the entire hotel and its one thousand guests and patrons had to be evacuated.

Here's the link that was broadcast that night on NBC Miami's Channel 4 news

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local-beat/Gunman-Kills-One-at-Miami-Beach-Resort-97258409.html

The guests were not let back into the hotel until 3:00 am when officials determined the smell was not hazardous. A wedding reception also had to be interrupted.

But for the Belizean Americans who were there for a post-speech concert - the party didn't stop. They moved to the Grand Beach hotel across the street and according to the Miami Herald, using a metal tub, they improvised with Belizean songs. Minister Boots Martinez - who was there - told us that when the main hotel was re-opened at three the party goers then told the band to strike up.

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