Too frequently, hospitality executives begin planning for disaster after the disaster has occurred, according to this study of 185 tourist-business executives doing business in communities that had experienced a disaster-specifically, flooding in northwestern Washington and Hurricane Bob on the Atlantic Coast. Most companies' planning processes fall into one of seven patterns: top down, elite group, team development, committee, staff review, external provision, and inherited. Less than one-third of the plans were written and barely one in five was reviewed annually. Decision making during a disaster tends to be incremental-as the situation appears to worsen, more decisions are made, many of them unanticipated. A few executives had engaged in local emergency-preparedness programs. The best way to meet disaster is by planning appropriate actions, resisting denial, having a single person in charge, improving employee and customer communication, anticipating the needs of special populations, and recognizing family priorities, as well as structuring media relations.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Aguirre, B. E. (1991) Evacuation in Cancun during Hurricane Gilbert. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 9, 31-45.
2.
Baker, E. J. (1991) Hurricane evacuation behavior. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 9, 287-310.
3.
Britton, N. R. , Kearney, G. E., Britton, K. A. (1983) Disaster response: The perception of the threat and its influence on community decision on insurance. In J. Oliver (Ed.), Insurance and natural disaster management: Papers presented at a seminar, Townsville, July 1983 (pp. 260-332). Townsville, Queensland, Australia: Centre for Disaster Studies, James Cook University of North Queensland.
4.
Burton, I. , Kates, R. W., White, G. F. (1993) The environment as hazard. New York: The Guilford Press.
5.
Charles, M. T. , Kim, J. C. K. (Eds.) (1988) Crisis management. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
6.
Clark, J. R. (1991) Case study: Hurricane Gilbert in Yucatan, Mexico. In A. Kreimer & M. Munasinghe (Eds.), Managing natural disasters and the environment. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
7.
Covello, V. T. , Lave, L. B., Moghissi, A., Uppuluri, V. R. R. (1987) Uncertainty in risk assessment, risk management, and decision making. New York: Plenum Press.
8.
Cutter, S. L. (1991) Fleeing from harm: International trends in evacuations from chemical accidents. InternationalJournal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 9, 267-285.
9.
Drabek, T. E. (1969) Social processes in disaster: Family evacuation. Social Problems, 16, 336-349.
10.
Drabek, T. E. (1986) Human system responses to disaster: An inventory of sociologicalfindings. New York: Springer-Verlag.
11.
Drabek, T. E. (1987) The professional emergency manager: Structures and strategiesfor success. Boulder, CO: Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado.
12.
Drabek, T. E. (1990) Emergency management: Strategies for maintaining organizational integrity. New York: Springer-Verlag.
13.
Drabek, T. E. (1991) Anticipating organizational evacuations: Disaster planning by managers of tourist-oriented private firms. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 9, 219-245.
14.
Drabek, T. E. (1994a) Disaster evacuation in the tourist industry. Boulder, CO: Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado.
15.
Drabek, T. E. (1994b). Risk perceptions of tourist business managers. The Environmental Professional, 16, 327-341.
16.
Drabek, T. E. , Haas, J. E. (1969) Laboratory simulation of organizational stress. American Sociological Review, 34, 223-238.
17.
Drabek, T. E. , Haas, J. E. (1974) Understanding complex organizations. Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown.
18.
Drabek, T. E. , Hoetmer, G. J. (Eds.) (1991) Emergency management: Principles and practice for local government. Washington, DC: International City Management Association.
19.
Drabek, T. E. , Tamminga, H. L., Kilijanek, T. S., Adams, C. R. (1981) Managing multiorganizational emergency responses: Emergent search and rescue networks in natural disasters and remote area settings. Boulder, CO: Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado.
20.
Fitzpatrick, C. , Mileti, D. S. (1991) Motivating public evacuation. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 9, 137-152.
21.
Goltz, J. D. , Russell, L. A., Bourque, L. B. (1992) Initial behavioral response to a rapid onset disaster. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 10, 43-69.
22.
Haas, J. E. , Drabek, T. E. (1973) Complex organizations: A sociological perspective. New York: Macmillan.
23.
Handmer, J. , Dutton, B., Guerin, B., Smithson, M. (1991) New perspectives on uncertainty and risk. Canberra and Mt. Macedon, Australia: Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies, Australian National University and Australian Counter Disaster College, Natural Disasters Organisation.
24.
Hohenemser, C. , Kates, R. W., Slovic, P. (1983) The nature of technological hazard. Science, 220, 378-384.
25.
Kahneman, D. , Tversky, A. (1973) Subjective probability: A judgment of representativeness. Cognitive Psychology, 3, 430-454.
26.
Kirschenbaum, A. (1992) Warning and evacuation during a mass disaster. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 10, 91-114.
27.
Kunreuther, H. , Ginsberg, R., Miller, L., Sagi, P., Slovic, P., Borkan, B., Katz, N. (1978) Disaster insurance protection: Public policy lessons. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
28.
Lindell, M. K. , Perry, R. W. (1990) Effects of the Chernobyl accident on public perceptions of nuclear plant accident risk. Risk Analysis, 10, 393-399.
29.
Marske, C. E. (Ed.) (1991) Communities of fate: Readings in the social organization of risk. Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
30.
Mileti, D. S. , Darlington, J. D., Fitzpatrick, C., O'Brien, P. W. (1993) Communicating earthquake risk: Societal response to revised probabilities in the Bay area. Ft. Collins, CO: Hazards Assessment Laboratory and Department of Sociology, Colorado State University.
31.
Mileti, D. S. , Sorensen, J. H., O'Brien, P. W. (1992) Toward an explanation of mass care shelter use in evacuations. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 10, 24-42.
32.
Mileti, D. S. , Sorensen, J. H. (1990) Communication of emergency public warnings: A social science perspective and state-of-theart assessment. Washington, DC: Federal Emergency Management Agency.
33.
Murphy, P. E. , Bayley, R. (1989) Tourism and disaster planning. Geographical Review, 79, 36-46.
34.
O'Brien, P. W. , Mileti, D. S. (1992) Citizen participation in emergency response following the Loma Prieta earthquake. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 10, 71-89.
35.
Quarantelli, E. L. (1980) Evacuation behavior and problems: Findings and implications from the research literature. Columbus, OH: Disaster Research Center, The Ohio State University.
36.
Rogers, G. O. (1985) On determining public acceptability of risk. In C. Whipple & V. T. Covello (Eds.), Risk analysis in the private sector (pp. 483-504). New York: Plenum Press.
37.
Rowe, W. D. (1977) An anatomy of risk. New York: Wiley Interscience.
38.
Roy F.Weston, Inc. (1989) Identification and analysis of factors affecting emergency evacuations. Washington, DC: Nuclear Management and Resources Council.
39.
Slovic, P. , Fischhoff, B., Lichtenstein, S. (1982) Fact versus fears: Understanding perceived risk. In D. Kahneman, P. Slovic, & A. Tversky (Eds.). Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases (pp. 463-489). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
40.
Slovic, P. , Kunreuther, H., White, G. F. (1974) Decision processes, rationality, and adjustment to natural hazards. In G. F. White (Ed.), Natural hazards: Local, national, global (pp. 187-205). New York: Oxford University Press.
41.
Sorensen, J. H. (1991) When shall we leave? Factors affecting the timing of evacuation departures. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 9, 153-165.
42.
Sorensen, J. H. , Mileti, D. S. (1988) Warning and evacuation: Answering some basic questions. Industrial Crisis Quarterly, 2, 195-209.
43.
Sorensen, J. H. , Vogt, B. M., Mileti, D. S. (1987) Evacuation: An assessment of planning and research. Oak Ridge, TN: Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
44.
Starbuck, W. H. (1985) Acting first and thinking later: Theory versus reality in strategic change. In J. M. Pennings & Associates (Eds.), Organizational strategy and change (pp. 336-372). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
45.
Thompson, J. D. (1967) Organizations in action. New York: McGraw-Hill.
46.
Turner, R. H. (1993) Reflections on the past and future of social research on earthquake warnings. International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, 11, 453-468.
47.
Tversky, A. , Kahneman, D. (1971) Belief in the law of small numbers. Psychological Bulletin, 76, 105-110.
48.
Yin, R. K. (1984) Case study research: Design and methods. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.
49.
Zeigler, D. J. , Brunn S.D., Johnson J.H. Jr. (1981) Evacuation from a nuclear technological disaster. Geographical Review, 71, 1-16.
50.
Zelinsky, W. , Kosinski, L. A. (1991) The emergency evacuation of cities. Savage, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.
