Shops, hotels and restaurants say they're 'very concerned' at the effect the demise of the International Hotel School will have on their business.

The school closed abruptly earlier today - leaving students and staff bewildered - and anxious about their future.

The students provided a valuable workforce for the hospitality industry - which is now facing a staff shortage just before the busiest TT fortnight the Island has seen for years.

Representatives from the industry have been meeting at the Hilton Hotel to review the situation.

The Hilton's company secretary Anne Marie Waydock says the loss of Hotel School students will hit hard: (Clip 1)

Students from the School - many from overseas - say the course meant everthing to them - and their families back home will suffer too: (Clip 2)