Tourism Risk Management - Sustainable Tourism Online

A disaster requires a total community response. One way or another, everyone is affected by a
disaster and by the changes the event causes: to the economy, through the destruction of jobs and
businesses; to community infrastructure, through destruction of the resources which the community
usually depends upon; or to the social networks and structure, through death and injury.
Disasters also require an integrated disaster management system: an active partnership between
governments and authorities, organizations, agencies and the community. Although the tourism
industry has rarely been a formal partner in these processes in the past, it is recommended that
tourism should be a significant element within integrated community disaster management systems
in the future.
This chapter provides a practical framework within which tourism operators and tourism-related
government agencies can address risk management processes for individual businesses,
organizations and tourism destinations.
Disasters and Tourism
The tourism industry is not responsible for the development or implementation of disaster
management plans and arrangements: community disaster management agencies are responsible
for them. Where possible, though, the tourism industry should participate in disaster planning and
management activities through appropriate local, regional or national committees. Such participation
enables the importance of tourism to be drawn to the attention of disaster management agencies and
promotes the need for appropriate measures to protect visitors to be considered and developed.
In this way, tourism operators and destinations can be proactive and potentially reduce the effects of
disasters upon their industry. Importantly, the particular needs of tourism, including visitors and visitor
markets, can be addressed in the planning processes.
Crisis Management
Crisis is defined as: ‘any situation that has the potential to affect long-term confidence in an organization
or a product, or which may interfere with its ability to continue operating normally’ (PATA, 2003). Crisis
management is used in this guide as the term which applies to the means by which a tourism
business/organization or destination prepares for, responds to, and recovers from, a crisis.
Crises for tourism operators and destinations may arise from internal (organizational) sources or from
external events (community events such as the impact or threat of a disaster). Some of the case
studies in this guide highlight the crises faced by tourism businesses/organizations and destinations
as a result of community disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the Bali Bombings. In both cases,
the community disaster affected confidence in tourism and interfered with its ability to continue normal
operations.
The Role of the Tourism Industry in Risk Management
There are two fundamental roles for tourism in risk management: the first of these is as a partner with
government and community agencies in the development of multi-agency, coordinated disaster
management plans, systems, procedures and processes which include the needs of tourism; the
second is to develop plans and procedures appropriate to a destination and to the specific roles and
responsibilities of an organization, to train personnel to those plans, and to conduct regular tests of
plans, procedures and personnel with subsequent amendment and updating.
No organization involved in disaster management should work in isolation. Each tourism operator
and organization is part of the disaster management community and should function within the
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