Bad timing and a dash of irony for the Denver Marriott Tech Center after a computer glitch locked every guest from their hotel room just before midnight on New Year’s Eve.
The hotel, which is located in the heart of the Colorado city’s technology business zone, found itself dealing with a change of mood from guests who were previously jubilant at the arrival of 2012 when, on the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, every electronic keycard stopped working and the lift system ground to a halt.
Some reports say some guests were ill and arguments broke out, prompting the hotel to call the police.
Officials at the 628-room property took almost four hours to fix the problem, as revellers waited in heaving guest areas around the hotel or slept in the corridors outside their rooms.
Local TV channel 9News compiled the following report, including a brief interview with a gloomy looking director of sales, Rob Neilus.
A Marriott official says once the hotel became aware of the situation, it contacted the manufacturer of the system to provide technical support.
“We are sorry for the inconvenience this caused and are providing the night’s lodging free of charge to all registered guests.
“We will continue to work closely with the manufacturer of the lock system to better understand what may have caused the malfunction and will do what we can to prevent a similar malfunction from happening in the future.”
The glitch is not believed to have occurred at any other Marriott property, although the timing of the incident will remind many of the lead up to the New Year celebrations in 1999, when many predicted a widespread meltdown in almost every area of life and commerce where computers play a role.
Others will, of course, just yearn for a return to brass keys.
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Oh dear that sounds like a nightmare!!