USA – A convention planned for early November has been moved from the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Resort due to uncertainty of its ability to reopen in time.
The Nashville hotel and venue was forced to close its doors in early May when excessive rainfall caused a Cumberland river to burst its banks and flood the building, leaving parts of the hotel under more than ten feet of muddy water.
The US Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF) has moved its GEOINT 2010 convention from Nashville to New Orleans. The convention, which last year brought 3,300 attendees, will take place on the originally-scheduled dates of 1 to 4 November.
President of USGIF Keith Masback says: “As the flood waters have receded and experts have been able to assess the full scope of the damage, it has become apparent that the recovery will take far longer than the original projections.
“Based on extensive discussions USGIF has had with the Opryland staff and the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau, neither USGIF nor the Gaylord Opryland felt confident the hotel property and city would be fully ready to host the attendees, exhibitors, speakers and guests for GEOINT 2010.”
The GEOINT Symposium will not return to Nashville until 2015.
