Manchester-based travel companies sent messages of support to staff following this week’s terrorist attack – the worst in the UK since the 2005 bombings in London.
So-called Islamic State claimed responsibility for the blast at Manchester Arena at the end of a concert by US singer Ariana Grande on Monday.
Travel Counsellors, which has 280 staff at its Manchester head office, offered round-the-clock counselling to staff.
The group confirmed “a couple” of staff had attended the concert, while some gave blood to help victims.
Chief executive Steve Byrne said: “We do have people in the business with customers, friends and relatives that may have been affected, and we’re here to support them in any way we can.
“Everyone pulls together when something like this happens.
“We will be looking at ways we can support those directly affected, and the wider Manchester community, over the coming days.”
Staff of Manchester travel firms struggled to get to work, as the city’s Victoria Station was closed and streets shut off to traffic.
Kuoni allowed employees at its city centre branch to go home early on Tuesday, while North America Travel Service’s shop on Deansgate was shut as its premises were in the area cordoned off by police.
Scenic and Emerald Waterways allowed staff to work from home on Tuesday, the day after the blast.
Marketing executive Jasmin Shaw said: “We are really shocked; it’s right on our doorstep. A few people have not been able to make it into work. It was very subdued on the trains into Manchester.”
Paula Nuttall, group membership director of The Vertical Travel Group, which includes agency Miss Ellies Travel in Urmston, Manchester, said: “Manchester people are very resilient. All our girls are OK.”
But it brought back memories for Nuttall, who suffered a shattered ear drum as a result of the 1996 IRA bombing in Manchester.
The second day of the Global Travel Group Conference at La Manga Club in Murcia, Spain, on Tuesday began with a moment’s reflection on the terrible events.
One agency member said they had a daughter at the gig, but she was unharmed.
Thomas Cook staff were among those evacuated from Manchester’s Arndale Centre on Tuesday morning after unconfirmed reports of a suspicious package being found.
Alan Bowen, legal adviser to the Association of Atol Companies, warned that the attack could spur the US to call for a speedier extension of the laptop ban on flights between Europe and the US.