Extreme weather event management in the palm of your hand

Technology-driven Toolkit available to Address Extreme Weather Events 

Extreme weather events are one of the major global risks facing communities around the globe. To address the impact of extreme events, Brisbane-based EarthCheck has developed a Risk and Crisis Toolkit for the travel and tourism industry. It's a practical technology-driven resource to help businesses, operators and destinations to collectively address risk management before, during and after an emergency event.

Organisations are likely to face some form of crisis every 4 to 5 years. Knowing when and how to act can be critical in saving time, money and jobs. EarthCheck's CrisisReady Program, App and Toolkit helps businesses, tourism operators and destinations create a 24/7 risk and crisis management plan and the CrisisReady App executes the plan step-by-step when disaster strikes.

EarthCheck Founder and CEO, Stewart Moore

"The CrisisReady technology puts a risk and crisis management plan at your fingertips. Set to go at the push of a button, the App sends information directly to a Content Management System which controls the alerts and provides a more streamlined response process," said EarthCheck Founder and CEO, Stewart Moore.

EarthCheck plans to export the user-friendly cloud-based technology of the CrisisReady App globally.

"As the world's leading scientific benchmarking, certification and advisory group for travel and tourism, EarthCheck has identified a need for emergency preparedness and we have the capacity to support businesses and destinations in uncertain times, Mr Moore continued.

"The world is at a tipping point and the type and impact of climatic events such as the wildfires in California, bushfires in Australia and the tsunamis in Asia are likely to continue," Mr Moore warned. "It's not so much about if, but when, a disaster will strike. Today it's about having a business continuity plan already prepared, and that means adopting new technologies and operational procedures to help build resilience. With unpredictable weather affecting cities, communities and the environment, adopting interactive mobile technology that works 24/7 and linking the App to deploy teams quickly to the most important jobs in a crisis is critical."

The mobile application is an evolution of technology that puts paper-based crisis management practices into a smartphone and into the hands of your team; no matter where they are. "Effectively it's a 'Disaster HQ' in your pocket," said Mr Moore.

"The most exciting thing about the toolkit is the positive implication this has for government, local authorities, businesses and destinations all over the world."

For every dollar invested in disaster mitigation, three dollars is saved in recovery costs allowing organisations and destinations to get back into market as quickly as possible - 80% of businesses without continuity plans do not survive more than two years after a major crisis.

"Visitors can be overlooked in disaster planning. As non-locals, they may not know the escape routes, may not be connected with local media, and they may not speak the same language as local residents.  A different level of vulnerability can come into play, which is where the CrisisReady technology can prepare communities to be crisis ready for disruption," Moore concluded.