BALTIMORE T OURISM E MERGENCY M ANAGEMENT COMMUNICATION P LAN

Transcription

1 BALTIMORE T OURISM E MERGENCY M ANAGEMENT COMMUNICATION P LAN 2014 I. OVERVIEW A. INTRODUCTION The safety and well- being of every visitor to Baltimore is of utmost importance during times of emergency, and the City of Baltimore continues to monitor, evaluate and outline specific emergency strategies for immediate implementation to ensure the security of every visitor and resident alike. For the meeting professional, a Visit Baltimore representative is the around- the- clock emergency contact, along with the entire Visit Baltimore Emergency Management Team, a group of executive staff who is on- site and in touch with city and state officials and meeting suppliers to ensure a smooth transition through each phase of the emergency plan. Emergencies do not discriminate based on location or timing, and they can hit when a city least expects them. As such, the City of Baltimore has developed a unified plan, which establishes communication protocols to ensure that every visitor to Baltimore as well as hospitality partners are familiar with the emergency procedures and their individual roles. This plan, along with diligent and thorough preparation with an emphasis on safety, will assist visitors and community members in responding appropriately to emergencies. This plan has been integrated with the City of Baltimore and other hospitality partners in an effort to be prepared for a number of different types of emergency situations, such as: fire, structural damage, hurricane, flood, tornado, power outages, medical emergencies, bombs and terrorist threats. The goal of the Baltimore Tourism Emergency Management Communication Plan is to ensure the safety and well being of all visitors and to provide accurate information and visible leadership in a timely fashion. 3

2 B. PURPOSE The City of Baltimore and Visit Baltimore have implemented a unified emergency communications plan to ensure the timely flow of information across the region in emergency situations. This document presents a comprehensive and effective citywide emergency communications plan for the City of Baltimore s tourism industry. Visit Baltimore serves as the nexus of all data inputs and outputs necessary to effectively organize and disseminate accurate, timely and necessary information to the hospitality community and all visitors. This document is made available to meeting planners, convention attendees, travel professionals and guests to Baltimore to ensure they are equipped with the knowledge to make informed decisions and to be assured that their safety and well- being is of utmost importance. C. WHAT IS AN EMERGENCY? In this plan, an emergency is defined as anything that impacts the safety and security of our visitors and has the potential to create significant and sustained media coverage and/or public scrutiny that has potential to damage the city s reputation as a travel and business destination. Emergencies can be a serious event, perceived or real, and can disrupt tourism activities and negatively impact the desirability of the city. Examples include: Violent crimes especially against visitors in key tourism locations Outbreak of a communicable, dangerous disease Hurricanes, floods, tornados or other sudden and severe weather affecting major tourist destinations Civil unrest, religious/political boycotts Fire at the Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore Visitor Center, or at a hotel or attraction that involves injuries Incident on a public boat or water taxi that involves injuries Terrorist activities, whether domestic or international in origin, such as bombings and release of chemical or biological agents Nuclear incident, including accidents/terrorist incidents at nuclear plants in the region II. ACTION PLAN A. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT TEAMS i. Visit Baltimore Emergency Management Team Although it is nearly impossible to anticipate every type of emergency, it is our intent to be prepared and be able to assist should an emergency occur. At the first possible sign of an emergency, senior representatives from Visit Baltimore and the Baltimore Convention Center will convene to establish a team referred to as the Visit Baltimore Emergency Management Team. 4

3 The Visit Baltimore Emergency Management Team s main responsibility, as detailed in this plan, is to process the flow of tourism- related information. The team supplies the Mayor s Office of Emergency Management with tourism- specific information. Once this information has been processed, recommendations are then communicated to conventions and meetings organizations, travel professionals, Visit Baltimore members and industry partners, as well as to visitors and media, as appropriate. ii. Mayor s Office of Emergency Management The Mayor s Office of Emergency Management is communications central during times of an emergency. The Mayor s Office of Emergency Management has established an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) that will be activated for major emergencies and disasters. They are tasked with analyzing data and determining a proper course of action. The EOC is responsible for front- line management of the incident, tactical planning and execution, determining whether outside assistance is needed and for relaying requests for internal and external resources. The Visit Baltimore employee s responsibility will be to inform the EOC of the customer s concerns and specific questions. B. PHASES OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT The Baltimore Tourism Emergency Management Communication Plan works to ensure safety is first and foremost for all visitors as well as provide the best possible communication and information to Visit Baltimore s stakeholders during an emergency. The plan has been created and addresses emergency actions that are conducted during three phases of emergency management: i. Preparedness Visit Baltimore has a wide range of preparedness activities that range from training and ensuring employees can access data remotely. ii. Response The emergency plan is to be implemented when an emergency or natural disaster exceeds normal operating procedures. iii. Recovery Recovery planning and operations begins before and continues during a disaster and is properly implemented post disaster. It involves the restoration of all systems to a normal status. Recovery includes both short- term and long- term activities. 5

4 III. PROTOCOLS A. COMMUNICATION CHANNELS The communication strategy is in place to allow information to be distributed. In the event the Visit Baltimore Headquarters office is not accessible, Visit Baltimore Staff will direct inquiries to the following communication options outlined below: OPTIONS ADDRESS TELEPHONE 100 Light Call Center: n/a Street, th Floor and Baltimore, MD Visit Baltimore s Headquarter Office Headquarters Main: Website n/a n/a 3 Washington D.C. Regional Office 4 Chicago Regional Office 5 Baltimore Visitor Center Kim Allison Susanne Tunney 401 Light Street, Baltimore, MD O C O C kallison@baltimore.org stunney@baltimore.org B. EMERGENCY INFORMATION WEBSITE At the onset of an emergency, information will be available via the Visit Baltimore website to assist in making informed decisions, before, during and following the emergency. Look to the website for specific information including status of the convention center, hotels, airports, airlines, ground transportation, hotel and restaurant closures, shelter information, emergency supply stores, etc. Links will be provided at and will be continuously updated. 6

5 IV. EMERGENCY INFORMATION RESOURCES A. DESIGNATED EMERGENCY BROADCAST RADIO AND TV STATIONS WBAL- AM 1090 WBAL (NBC) - Baltimore TV WJZ (CBS) - Baltimore TV WMAR (ABC) Baltimore TV WBFF (FOX) Baltimore TV B. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Who from Visit Baltimore will contact me and when will I hear from them? You will be contacted by a staff member of Visit Baltimore at the first notification of a possible emergency. I haven t heard from Visit Baltimore, who do I call? NAME ADDRESS TELEPHONE Visit Baltimore s Headquarter Office 100 Light Street, 12th Floor Baltimore, MD Call Center: and Headquarters Main: NAME PHONE Kim Allison, CAE, CASE, CTA, Associate Director of Sales O C kallison@baltimore.org Susanne Tunney Regional O stunney@baltimore.org Director of Sales C Chicago/Midwest Regional Office Amra Elmore, Regional O aelmore@baltimore.org Director of Sales Sheila Provenzano Senior Ntl. Sales Manager/ Mid- West Laurie Nelson- Choice Director of Diversity & National Sales C O O C sprovenzano@baltimore.org lchoice@baltimore.org 7

6 Where can I go to get the most recent information? Visit Baltimore membership extranet: Visit Baltimore Call Center: and Can Visit Baltimore help get information out to my attendees even if my group is not yet in town? Yes and the following vehicles can be used to disseminate information: Visit Baltimore Call Center (in or out of town) Website (in and out of town) If Visit Baltimore managed the housing, a blast message can be sent out to attendees (in and out of town) Post signage in Visitor Center for groups (in town only) Convention Center Concierge Desk (in town only) What can I do to make sure my organization is always prepared? It is important your organization has an Emergency Preparedness Plan. Go to and download the template. Creating an emergency plan takes commitment but once created, this type of plan can be reused for future meetings with simple modifications. A personalized emergency action plan will ensure that you are prepared in the event of a natural or man- made disaster and ensure you are well informed and prepared. Your organization and your attendees will appreciate the lengths you have taken to be ready. Contact your sales manager and let them know you would like an Emergency Preparedness template. The Emergency Preparedness template can also be found at Also consider purchasing meeting insurance. How should I decide whether my organization should cancel our convention or meeting? It is important to contact Visit Baltimore at the first sign a potential emergency might exist or affect your meeting. This is your primary resource for up- to- date information. It is also important to contact your insurance company immediately to find out what protocol to follow regarding possible cancellation claims. Engage your executive staff and leadership using information from Visit Baltimore. This information will help you make the best decision for the safety of your staff and meeting attendees and minimize financial damage for your organization. Avoiding knee- jerk reactions to incomplete and/or false information will help you and your organization make an educated decision based on data- driven facts to save you time, effort and money. When should I contact my insurance company? At the first sign of an emergency you should contact your insurance company directly on what protocol to follow regarding cancellation claims. Cancellation is not your only option, and by communicating with your insurance company, you can explore other options. 8

7 What are the official emergency broadcast radio and TV stations? For more information, review the Designated Emergency Broadcast Radio and Television Stations found under the Emergency Information Resources Section in this plan. Official Emergency Preparedness Numbers: If you find yourself in an emergency situation, always call 911. For a police non- emergency while in Baltimore, dial 311. Where are the nearest hospitals? Refer to the list of hospitals/clinics and pharmacies included under the supporting documents section of this plan. Where are the nearest downtown locations for 24- hour pharmacies? Refer to the list of hospitals/clinics and pharmacies included under the supporting documents section of this plan. C. EVACUATION OPTIONS Depending on the emergency, there are various evacuation procedures in place. For information on evacuation routes and other resources, visit the City of Baltimore Website at i. Train and Bus: Baltimore Greyhound Station 2110 Haines Street, Baltimore Downtown, MD , customer service Amtrak Baltimore Penn Station 1500 North Charles Street Penn Station Baltimore, MD Maryland Transit Administration MARC Station Information: train or Penn Line Baltimore Penn Station 1500 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD BWI Airport 7 Amtrak Way, Linthicum, MD

8 Service Areas - Operates primarily between Baltimore s Penn Station through BWI Airport and Union Station in DC. Stops include Baltimore City; Odenton; Bowie State University; Harford County, MD and Washington, DC. Camden Line Camden Station 301 West Camden Street, Baltimore, MD Service Areas Operates out of Camden Yards in downtown Baltimore City and travels to Union Station in Washington, DC. Stops include Dorsey; Laurel and College Park, MD. ii. Airports Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI) Dulles Airport Reagan National Airport 7426 New Ridge Road Hanover, MD Saarinen Circle Sterling, VA Smith Blvd Arlington, VA iii. BWI Airlines AIRLINE TELEPHONE WEBSITE Air Canada TTY Air Tran Airways TTY British Airways TTY Condor Delta Air Lines TTY Frontier Airlines TTY Jet Blue TTY Southwest Airlines TTY Spirit Airlines United Airlines TTY US Airways TTY US Airways Express

9 iv. Local Ground Transportation Contact Information: Refer to the list of local ground transportation contact information included under the supporting documents section of this plan. V. SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS A. Urgent Care Hospitals/Clinics and Pharmacies B. Baltimore Convention Center Emergency Plan C. Visit Baltimore Member Transportation Companies 11