Natural disasters* such as avalanches, earthquakes, flooding, hurricanes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, tornados, tsunamis and wildfires, are up a third compared to last year according to data from World Travel Protection, a world leading travel assistance organisation, and its travel risk intelligence company, Riskline.
Once safe destinations are no longer immune from unpredictable climatic events. The analysis found that the countries with the most wildfire alerts are Australia, Canada, USA, Spain, Indonesia, Greece, Chile, Italy, Kazakhstan and South Korea.
Kate Fitzpatrick, Regional Security Director, EMEA, World Travel Protection, has travelled to some of the most dangerous parts of the world, and below are her ten travel essentials.
- Emergency Contact Details – Save your emergency contact details clearly on your phone. Use the acronym ICE (In Case of Emergency) in front of critical contacts, and number them ICE1, ICE2, by importance (family, work and supports, etc.)
- Passport biography page, visas and ICE contacts – Laminate a list of your emergency contacts, your passport and visas. Having hard protected copies may be a lifeline in a crisis or emergency event, especially in an evacuation.
- Travel assistance app on home screen – Make sure the emergency app of your travel assistance provider isn’t saved in a folder with multiple other apps. It needs to be on the home screen of a device and stand alone for ease of identification. Being easily located and on hand is critical in a crisis.
- USB chargeable mini-LED torch – Torches are always useful and having one which is USB chargeable takes away the worry of dead batteries.
- Zip-lock freezer bags – Having some zip-lock bags can make the difference to a ruined phone and documents in adverse environmental conditions, as well as provide a life-saving solution to storing clean water.
- Spare rechargeable power pack – For your laptop and a mobile, bring the largest power pack that is practical when also considering weight and bulk. There are some solar powered options to recharge, but if cost is a factor, look for capacity over functions and aesthetics.
- Basic first aid kit – Take an off-the-shelf camping or pharmacy stocked basic first aid kit. If in doubt, ask a pharmacist or your travel assistance provider for suggestions.
- Dual SIM non-smartphone – It is important to have as many options as possible to enable you to communicate in an emergency. Dual SIM gives you access to different networks, especially in regions that are less developed and data services are unreliable or, due to a crisis or disaster, unavailable.
- Wide-mouth water bottle – In some crisis events this can be used as a protective case for valuables and documents, and a flotation item in a backpack if needed.
- Pre-paid credit/debit card and cash – Try to ensure you could cover at least three days of expenses if needed. Ideally, enough money or pre-pay to secure an emergency flight or vehicle transport to the nearest safe airport in a wide-scale crisis or emergency event.
Kate Fitzpatrick, Regional Security Director, EMEA, World Travel Protection said: “The world is changing, and once safe destinations are no longer immune from unpredictable climatic events. When travelling preparation is key, and that includes ensuring you have up to date information on your destination, as well as some travel essentials which will help if things do go wrong.”
