I am having a very busy time in the UK, attending seminars and other genealogy events, doing some research, and visiting relatives and friends. Right now I am staying with a friend in Charlton, London. We expected our area to be safe, but on Monday night we had a police helicopter overhead until about 2am, spotlighting rioters and looters at our local shopping centre (four blocks away). We could smell burning rubber and hear shouting in the main road that runs parallel to our street.
Overall, though, it is much safer here than in many other areas. Last night there were no helicopters here, but police cars with sirens blaring were zooming past on the main road at about one minute intervals from 8pm until I fell asleep around 10:30pm. (Postscript: see Monday 8th August in Timeline of the 2011 England Riots.)
I could see why you told me about this in the context of the Nairobi terror attacks...helicopters but I don't remember sirens, and gunfire. You just never know what you'll strike when you travel.....
ReplyDeletePauleen, I'm so glad that you were not too close to that shopping centre in Nairobi. My London experience pales into insignificance compared to that.
DeleteDear Judy - helicopters certainly signal that something is wrong don't they? We live very close to Mt Coot-tha and during the floods in Brisbane the choppers seemed to be going all day from the tv stations. Your experience in Brixton sounds similar but more scary with the smell of burning rubber. I don't know whats more scary....the silence of flooding (you know something is happening but it's so quiet) or the noise of looters. I suspect the latter.
ReplyDeleteYes Alex, I think looters would usually seem more threatening. Being near the TV stations, you'd have more reason to complain than I do, but I get cranky about the helicopter that flies over my house in Brisbane between 9:30pm and 10:30pm most nights. I've never figured out what it's doing.
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