Spread the love

Post Views: 55

Western Colombia is counting the devastating human and economic cost of a magnitude 7.4 earthquake, with the travel industry now balancing two urgent priorities: keeping travellers out of harm’s way and helping battered communities get back on their feet.

The earthquake struck near San José del Palmar in Chocó on 10 August, with the US Geological Survey recording a magnitude of 7.4 and a depth of about 107 kilometres.

By 12 August, Colombian authorities had confirmed 265 deaths, nearly 500 people unaccounted for and 3,770 injured, while more than 9,550 homes had been destroyed. Rescue teams continued their race against time across some of western Colombia’s hardest-hit cities.

Those figures have changed sharply since the first emergency reports and may move again as rescue and recovery operations continue.

For travel sellers, tour operators and corporate travel managers, that is reason enough to keep the refresh button busy.

Riskline takes western Colombia to Extreme, then High

Travel risk intelligence specialist Riskline initially raised its assessment to Extreme across six western departments: Antioquia, Caldas, Chocó, Quindío, Risaralda and Valle del Cauca as the scale of destruction and disruption became apparent.

Riskline uses a five-tier system ranging from Low through Moderate, Medium, High, and Extreme. At the top of the scale, Extreme represents highly dangerous and unpredictable conditions where travel disruption can become chaotic and travel itself may become impossible. High remains a serious assessment, signalling the potential for severe or widespread disruption.

In a subsequent public update, Riskline said it had lowered those six departments from Extreme to High. That is certainly movement in the right direction, but nobody should mistake it for a tourism starting gun.

Essential services, transport, telecommunications and local infrastructure remain under pressure, while damaged buildings and the threat of further aftershocks continue to complicate life on the ground.

Riskline AMER Analyst Marco Túlio Lara said in the company’s initial assessment:

“The scale of disruption following this earthquake extends well beyond the immediate physical damage. With thousands of people still missing, transport networks severely affected and essential services under pressure, organisations need to maintain close visibility over the situation and the location of their travellers. Conditions are continuing to evolve, so access to timely, verified intelligence will be critical to supporting informed travel decisions in the coming days.”

The numbers referenced in that original statement reflected information available at the time. Subsequent official reporting formally placed the number of people unaccounted for at nearly 500, demonstrating how quickly information can change during a disaster of this scale.

And therein lies the message for travel managers: yesterday’s briefing may already belong in the filing cabinet.

Airports and roads remain under pressure

For Australians travelling to Colombia, the Australian Government’s Smartraveller service says the Colombian Government has declared a state of national disaster following the earthquake. Damage has been reported across major centres including Cali, Manizales, Pereira and Quibdó, and further aftershocks remain possible.

Air travel is still disrupted.

Smartraveller advises that operations at the airports of Armenia, Buenaventura, Manizales, Pereira, and Cartago are either suspended or operating under restrictions, and that passengers should contact their airline or travel agent for current flight information.

Road travel is hardly enjoying a better week.

Infrastructure damage and landslides are disrupting routes through affected districts, prompting authorities to urge travellers to check conditions before setting out.

That may sound like the usual chorus of disruption advice, but in a post-earthquake environment it carries considerably more weight.

A flight showing “on time” is of limited comfort if the highway to the airport is blocked, the hotel has lost essential services or the transfer vehicle cannot get anywhere near the pickup point.

For travel advisors, the old-fashioned rule applies beautifully: reconfirm everything.

Intrepid turns travel network into relief network

While risk specialists continue to monitor the evolving situation, Intrepid Travel has moved to the humanitarian front, launching an emergency Colombia Earthquake Appeal through its not-for-profit, The Intrepid Foundation.

The appeal has been established with the Colombia-based NGO Patrulla Aérea Civil Colombiana (PAC), an organisation that provides free medical assistance to remote communities throughout the country.

PAC has access to volunteer pilots, medical professionals, and aircraft, giving it an unusually practical ability to deliver medical teams and supplies to communities where conventional ground access may be difficult.

The Intrepid Foundation will match donations up to AUD $30,000. Funds raised through the emergency appeal are being directed towards essential medical supplies and emergency care, food and accommodation for volunteer medical personnel, and aviation fuel required to transport people and supplies into affected areas.

Hernan Acevedo, General Manager, Colombia, Intrepid Travel said:

“Thousands of people across Western Colombia, including Cali, Pereira, Quibdó and Chocó Department are facing loss, uncertainty and urgent needs especially access to medical care. In moments like this, solidarity can make an immediate and meaningful difference. We are asking for your help, by donating if you are able, or by sharing the appeal with your networks.”

Intrepid has confirmed that its travellers and staff in Colombia are safe, and that trips continue to operate. Groups travelling in western Colombia are being rerouted away from affected areas and supplied with alternative itineraries and inclusions.

The operator says it intends to resume travel through affected regions as soon as doing so is safe and practical, acknowledging the important contribution tourism makes to local communities and livelihoods.

It is an important distinction.

Responsible tourism does not mean pressing on regardless because the brochure said Tuesday was a sightseeing day.

Sometimes the responsible thing is to change course, protect the traveller, give emergency services room to work and return when the community is ready.

Travel industry urged to back Colombia appeal

Biheng Zhang, General Manager of The Intrepid Foundation, said:

“By giving to this appeal, the international travel community can directly contribute to the humanitarian relief efforts, supplying immediate medical needs to communities impacted by this devastating earthquake, while supporting a locally led NGO that is deeply rooted in the community and trusted by the local people.”

And this is where the global travel industry can do considerably more than offer sympathetic words.

DONATE TO THE COLOMBIA EARTHQUAKE APPEAL

To donate to recovery efforts, please visit The Intrepid Foundation’s Colombia Earthquake Appeal:

https://www.theintrepidfoundation.org/colombia-earthquake-appeal

The official appeal is raising funds for PAC’s emergency relief work, while The Intrepid Foundation is matching donations up to AUD $30,000.

Intrepid began operating in Colombia in 2019 and currently runs eight trips in the country. It also maintains a local Bogotá office that employs eight full-time team members, and The Intrepid Foundation has worked with PAC for the past three years.

That established local relationship matters.

When catastrophe strikes, there is precious little time for organisations to exchange business cards and work out which road they know.

What Australian travel advisors should tell clients

For travel professionals with clients heading to Colombia, the immediate job is straightforward: verify, reconfirm and document.

Check whether an itinerary touches the affected departments. Reconfirm flights directly with airlines. Check airport and highway conditions. Speak with trusted destination management companies and ground operators. Confirm accommodation remains operational. Ensure travellers know how to reach their insurer, operator and consular assistance if plans unravel.

Smartraveller continues to advise Australians to exercise a high degree of caution in Colombia overall, with stronger advice applying to several areas. Most of Valle del Cauca carries a “reconsider your need to travel” warning, while Buenaventura carries a “do not travel” warning due to ongoing security risks beyond the earthquake itself.

Travellers already within earthquake-affected areas are advised to follow instructions from Colombian authorities, monitor local media, avoid damaged or unstable buildings, remain alert for aftershocks and let family and friends know they are safe.

Equally, travel advisors should resist painting all of Colombia with one enormous red brush.

Colombia is a large and geographically diverse country. Risk varies sharply between departments and, in some cases, between individual cities and surrounding districts. Smartraveller itself applies different levels of advice across the country.

Good advice therefore needs geography, not guesswork.

Recovery will outlast the headlines

The earthquake will eventually disappear from the breaking-news banners.

Rebuilding homes, hospitals, roads, businesses and visitor confidence will take considerably longer.

Colombia’s government has already pledged an emergency reconstruction fund for damaged hospitals, schools, homes and infrastructure, underscoring the enormous rebuilding task ahead.

That is where tourism plays a role that extends well beyond cancellation queues and rebooking fees.

The same global industry capable of putting travellers onto aircraft, into hotels and across borders can also direct money, expertise and attention towards communities when they need it most.

For now, however, caution remains the watchword across earthquake-hit western Colombia.

Risk levels can be revised. Airports can reopen. Roads can be cleared.

Communities recover to a rather different timetable.

And as Intrepid’s appeal demonstrates, perhaps the most useful journey the travel industry can arrange this week is not another departure at all.

It is getting help to the people who need it.

Read Time: 6 minutes.