Risk Assessment.

Appreciation. Realism. Pre departure. Updating. Laying Off

My fianc and I booked a twin-bedded room and were placed in a doublebedded room. We now hold you responsible for the fact I find myself pregnant. This would not have happened if you had put us in the rooms that we booked. ~ Reported by News From Abroad A n active risk assessment might have avoided this. Very Marginal Adventurous travel is probably only marginally more risky than conventional travel and tourism. While there is no data or statistics to support this view, one has to assume that no one has thought to differentiate the different types of travel risk in such an analytical manner. You are 390,000 times more likely to be in a light aeroplane crash 6,212 times more likely to be in a car accident in a year 802,000 more times likely to have an accident in the bath, 4.2 million more times in a year to be attacked by venomous animals 4.3 million times more likely to be struck by lightening .than to die on an adventure that you have planned and calculated the risks yourself. These statistics are based on information from the National Safety Council released
in December 2002.

Uncertain You cannot have an adventure without some element of risk. Some of these risks you can control or minimise, while others you can prepare for their likelihood to either negate or reduce their impact on the adventure. What activities standard travel insurance polices will not cover are really the best guide to what is considered to be adventurously risky, or even dangerous, and even then it does not necessarily follow that these activities are directly connected to travel. The heightened and perceived risks, above the more normal scenarios, (the biggest risk for 99% of us travellers is still being robbed or getting sick) is mainly in specific situations and locations and can be prepared for in advance and managed in pursuit of the adventure without detracting from the purpose or enjoyment. Risk assessment should always be part of your pre-departure planning and should continue throughout the adventure to be evaluated and updated as necessary. Prior Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance The Seven Pillars of Adventure Wisdom. Most adventure travellers have a healthy respect of their physical limitations and/or their comfort zone. You should never disregard these limitations ~ they are a key to constant and regular checks at every stage.

Adventurous travellers also have another very important advantage. They start out with the mindset that they are responsible for themselves as individuals. In the main they do not subscribe to the Blame or Fault culture that has crossed the Atlantic in recent years that is further encouraged by the Nanny State attitude of some one else being responsible for making sure that we should not have let it happen to ourselves. Realism An acceptance of being responsible for ones self is a vital part of carrying out a personal risk assessment and certainly as a leader or manager of an adventure you should accept that you are ultimately responsible. As organiser and leader I accept full responsibility for anything that went wrong. ~ Robert Neill leader of the 5 men rescued after being trapped for 30 days in the 6000ft Lows Gully, Mt Kinabalu, Saba 1994. The group had no search and rescue beacon. Risk assessment before you go Undertaking a risk assessment before you set out is strongly recommended for all types of adventure, and whether you planned it yourself or used the services of a specialist. A risk assessment is a logical and careful examination of what could cause harm to you or your companions on an adventure. It allows you to look at the precautions you should take to prevent anything untoward happening to yourself or any one travelling with you orhelping you, as well as any loss or damage to your equipment and stores. Remember that accidents and ill health can ruin lives and in a worst-case scenario, you could be taken to court for not taking enough care. In an assessment you need to consider whether a risk is relevant and significant and whether you have taken, or can put in place measures to minimise the risk. Ciaran Elliott of The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen uses this example. You are planning to travel across a desert in a vehicle and need to assess the potential significant hazards associated with this activity:

Lack of water for the occupants of the vehicle Getting lost Insufficient fuel Getting the vehicle stuck Medical emergencies Vehicle breakdown Hijacking and kidnapping Vehicle accidents - hitting other vehicles, camels etc either through carelessness, tiredness etc

The list could go on and on. There are also hazards that are significant but not relevant, for instance:

Polar bear attack Meteorite impact

The list could continue into madness...! There are also hazards that are relevant but not significant, for instance:

Worn upholstery on the drivers seat Lack of haute cuisine during the desert crossing

There are also hazards that are neither significant or relevant and there is no reason to list these now as the point has been illustrated. Control Measures A risk assessment requires you to look at the hazards and consider the control measures required to reduce the hazard to a manageable or safe level. There are some hazards that will be easy to control. Polar bear attacks are unlikely outside the Arctic! Therefore, in the context of the journey, this risk does not require control measures. However, running out of fuel is a possibility and this hazard can be controlled by: 1. Estimating how much fuel you will need for a particular journey; 2. Ensuring your fuel tanks are full at the beginning of the journey and that you are carrying sufficient spare fuel. With these control measures in place, you have reduced the risk to a safe or manageable level. An alternative method You could examine the risks in the following way, adapted from a military training handbook

White Water Canoeing in the Ardeche

Steps relate to the Risk Assessment Process Generic Risk Assessment: Yes/No Ser Activity / Element Hazards (Step 1) (Step 2) (b) White water canoeing in Ardeche (c) Drowning Identified Existing (Step 3) (d)

Controls Residu Additio al Risk Require (Step 4) (e) (f)

(a) 1

Swimming tests, No capsize drills, rescue techniques, buoyancy aides, river not in full flood, instructor ratio 1:3

2 3

As ser 1 As ser 1

Capsize resulting in Training and No injury proficiency Cuts and abrasions First aid kit. Trained Yes 3

All experie rivers. arrange prior Splash. increase adventu not participa physica As ser 1

4 5 6 7 8

As ser 1 As ser 1 As ser 1 As ser 1 As ser 1

Head injuries Hypothermia Waterfalls/barriers Waterborne disease Canoe/paddle failure

first aider Helmets worn all times Wet suits, towels, dry clothing Guide book, knowledge/experience of river Guide book, local knowledge Medical kit Canoes/paddles maintained and inspected

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Active and Under Pressure Active risk assessment will come into play once you are under way. For example it might be a quick discussion with your companions before running a river, setting off on a climb, entering a cave system or starting a scramble. Sixth sense, experience, the ability to think clearly under pressure which skydivers would describe as non relative time are all key parts of this type of assessment. Making on the spot assessments is an important skill to acquire, and requires you if necessary to control your imagination. Uncanny as it may seem, if you imagine it will happen, it probably will. Ever been determined to avoid skiing into an obvious tree on a ski slope? Then hitting it fare and square? Reversing the car into some thing you are trying to avoid? Try to think in two separate forms. One form you could call, Factual Form and the other Imagined Form. The key is not to let the Imagined Form flood the Factual Form, being the realism of the situation. And you must not forget common sense, this is the stable foundation that both pre departure and on going active assessments must stand. It is amazing how many people forget to apply it. Unfairly Factored In There have been people who set out with the intention of relying on the rescue services when no longer able to cope. Some of these people never asked in advance for their support, they just new that because of the ethics and personal code of rescue organisations that they could take advantage of their commitment to preserve lives. Sadly and whether right or wrong, Pen Haddows Herculean achievement of a lone, one-way, journey to the North Pole has been criticised in these terms. " PEN HADOW, 41, was picked up after the (rescue) plane landed on a makeshift runway he had marked out on the floating ice using plastic bags. Hadow began his 480-mile (770-kilometer) trek on March 17 from Ward Hunt Island and on May 19 became the first person to reach the North Pole alone and unaided from Canada. 4

Two earlier attempts to retrieve him failed because of breaking ice and thick clouds. Steve Penikett, a spokesman for Kenn Borek Airlines, said the ice was moving rapidly and continually breaking up, making the rescue mission difficult for everyone involved." "I wish it hadn't taken place at this time of year. This is the latest we have ever done a pickup," he told Sky News. "It's not the issue of him running out of food," he said. "It's the issue of going to the pole at this time of year is just a bit stupid and you are putting a lot of people's lives at risk doing it." Laying off the Risk It is surprising how many people plan their adventures themselves and forget to takeout insurance or to protect themselves with an appropriate policy. Insurance cover for just about any adventure and all travel is available ~ including war zones. The key is to get the cover at a fair price for what you intend to undertake and always bother to read the small print. Some two-thirds of travellers who claim on their travel insurance end up having their claims fully or partly rejected. Research that around a third of UK travellers claim on their policies after returning home but only 35 per cent of claims are settled completely and seven per cent of claims are rejected outright. The most common reason is that the travellers are not fully covered for the claim they are trying to make. Medical costs are the most frequent claim on travel policies, followed by lost money, lost luggage, and holidays being cancelled or cut short. ~ Travel mole There are some very good specialist companies today such as Ault insurance in West Bromwich UK who have a complete understanding of adventurous activity and the travel risks involved as well as the environments they are best undertaken in, the best time of year, and the locations to avoid. Some of the adventure package tour operators sell insurance with their programmes, and this has to be a common sense option for you if booking with an operator as they will be the ones who have made sure that the cover is suitable for your adventure. Remember not to make an inaccurate or false declaration of you health and physical abilities. There are some blanket situations where cover is automatically withdrawn. Many travellers affected by 9-11 who were unable to get on their booked flights as governments around the world grounded incoming and out going aircraft were left out of pocket due to the act of terrorism clause that came into to play. However this is changing slowly and some of the major insurance providers have decided to cover some aspects of indirect loss created by terrorism and force majure. (Acts of War) Do check to see that you can get a policy that includes this cover. In many instances it is being offered with no increase of premium. The FCO and No Go Areas It is up to you to determine what is acceptable as a risk for you, as long as you are operating in side the law and are not going to put other people at risk unnecessarily. What you, or anyone else consider responsible may be another matter, and you must be the judge of that in your risk assessment.

Three UK tourists have signed up for a tour of Iraq, on an organised trip that promises travellers they will see what has happened to the country. Hinterland Travels two-week trip leaves next week despite ongoing looting, violence and general instability in much of the country. The idea of the trip is to see what has happened to the country as well as to visit the ancient sites. Said Geoff Hann, the organiser. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, unsurprisingly, is still advising against visiting the country. A spokeswoman told the Express: Anyone organising a trip or planning to go should not do so. ~ Daily Express Note the emphasis the FCO spokeswoman has placed on NOT going to Iraq. One wonders by what authority government officials will in future try to enforce their views and restrictions on travellers? Will they legislate to enforce their will? Beware that some insurance policies have in the small print that they become invalid if travelling against Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advisory bulletins. The FCO recommendations and information are often behind time, written in a non committal style and they certainly hold the political agenda of the government of the day. The FCO has also been criticised by the travel trade for use of incomprehensible and misleading english on its advisory website pages. There are other ways to get unbiased views that are directed at travellers needs, such as www.theinside-edge.com, which is managed by people who have a background in threat assessment worldwide that is solely applicable to travellers. Operators Responsibilities The area of personal insurance, travel trade responsibilities to clients and the due diligence that airlines and tour providers are liable for is rapidly changing and this will affect your adventures. British Airways has been penalised in the French courts for flying French nationals into Iraqs Baghdad airport, when fully in the knowledge that the airfield was under military attack and occupation by Iraqi forces, prior to the War of 1991. Whatever your plans, remember that you cannot eliminate all the risk; be flexible in your thinking and if your aim and your objectives have to change because of unacceptable risks, let your common sense, if nothing else, lead you back to safety. Remember to take the comfort blanket of insurance and keep constantly in mind.If it doesnt feel rightthen, IT ISNT!!

It is not the critic who counts not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, on where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arenawho striveswho spends himselfand who at worst, if he fails, at least he fails whilst daring, so

that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls, who know neither victory nor defeat ~ Theodore Roosevelt The Greatest Hazard in Life is to risk nothing. To laugh is to risk appearing a fool; To place your ideas and dreams before others is to risk their loss; To live is to risk dying. To try is to risk failure. But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard is to risk nothing, The person who risks nothing, has nothing, knows nothing and is nothing. Chained by their certitudes they are slaves, they have forfeited their freedom. Only a person who risks is truly free. ~ Unknown