How to Prepare for Natural Disasters in the Accommodation Industry

Michael Quigley knows a thing or two about preparing for disaster.

Michael is the manager of Discovery Holiday Parks at Airlie Beach, a wonderful destination that went through some rough luck last year. When Cyclone Debbie rolled through, Michael found himself preparing the park for what would become a massive storm that completely reshaped the local landscape. By the time Michael and his crew cleaned up after the cyclone, they had 500 truckloads of green waste and tree debris hauled away from the park.

On the latest episode of That Bad Review, Michael told me how entire swathes of trees were ripped away while the slow-moving storm battered the area for two whole days. Despite the park at Airlie Beach being completely surrounded by trees and national park, Michael’s site only had one cabin that was damaged by falling trees.

It all came down to a good tree management plan, he says. Every year, Michael’s business makes sure they get an arborist to come through and survey the area, determining what trees need to be cut down and which ones left to stand to ensure that the area is as safe as possible. Any park that is surrounded by trees, Michael says, should consult the service of a good arborist.

Another major issue was getting the guests to evacuate on time. Look, when you’re on holiday, the last thing you want to do is pack up and head out because of bad weather. You’re likely to give anybody pushback who comes through and disrupts your relaxation time. But luckily Michael had a bit of backup when an alert came through on everybody’s phones from the local government ordering them to evacuate. It’s hard to argue with the government, after all.

Once all was said and done, there was certainly some damage done to the park. This is where insurance comes in, of course, but we’ve all heard horror stories in the accommodation industry about insurance companies giving properties a hard time about what is and isn’t covered. That’s why I think you should have a good insurance broker that can mediate this sort of thing. When you’ve just spent several days getting hammered by a massive storm, the last thing you want to do is dispute finances with somebody far away whose main interest is in profit. Do yourself a favour: get in touch with a good insurance broker and get the stress out of your mind.

Bad weather is a natural part of life and something that nearly every hospitality-based business has to worry about. The trick is to make sure that you think ahead, though. Don’t wait until the last minute to address any issues your property may encounter. Draw up an emergency reaction plan, get in touch with local experts who can help you recover and prepare yourselves in all possible ways so you can get back to business as soon as possible.

Listen to my entire conversation with Michael here.