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In recent years, some undeveloped "wild" scenic spots have become punching places in online celebrity on social platforms. There are hidden safety risks behind the fiery "adventure". The safety management protection network of undeveloped scenic spots needs to be woven by many subjects such as government, platform, travel agency and tourists.
On both sides of the crystal clear river, colorful tents and awnings are set up, and tourists play in the river. However, in an instant, the flood came in with sediment, and the tourists even had no time to put away their camping equipment and fled to the shore, but some people were still trapped in the middle of the river, in a dilemma … …
This is the scene of a sudden flash flood in Longcaogou, Longmenshan Town, Pengzhou City, Sichuan Province on August 13th. According to the report of Pengzhou Emergency Management Bureau, 7 people were killed and 8 people were slightly injured in the disaster. In fact, Longcaogou, which was favored by tourists before the disaster, is an undeveloped "wild" scenic spot.
The mountain torrents in Pengzhou once again sounded the alarm. In recent years, some undeveloped scenic spots have become "original ecological scenic spots" and "niche punching places" on social platforms, attracting many tourists, and "adventure" tourism has even become a popular game, but the hidden security risks behind it cannot be underestimated.
There is a hidden crisis behind the fiery "exploration"
Half a month after the flash flood in Pengzhou, when the reporter searched for "Longcaogou" on the social platform again, "fear nature and cherish life" became a frequent word.
In recent years, outdoor tourism, such as exploration and camping, has become popular. Many "wild" attractions like Longcaogou have become online celebrity attractions on social platforms, such as the abandoned mine cave in Jiande, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, the "sheepskin cave" in Guiyang, Guizhou, and the Shilaoren cave in Qingdao, Shandong.
Yin Jie, a professor at the Institute of Tourism Safety of Huaqiao University, analyzed that from the perspective of demand, tourists’ favorite travel mode has changed from sightseeing to experience tourism. Camping, outdoor exploration and other activities have high experience attributes, and affected by the epidemic situation in COVID-19, tourists’ yearning for natural space is becoming stronger. With the double blessing of "experience" and "being close to nature", tourism modes such as outdoor adventure continue to be hot.
However, there are hidden security risks behind the fiery "adventure", and tourists are in distress frequently. On June 29, two tourists fell off the cliff while climbing the "sheepskin cave", causing leg fractures and head injuries; On August 20th, a woman accidentally fell into the water and died while playing paddle board in Xiangtang Reservoir in Nanjing … …
Yin Jie said that tourists who visit undeveloped scenic spots without authorization may not only face the risks of natural disasters such as floods, mudslides, landslides and landslides, but also have accidents such as falls, sprains, falls and disappearances. Zhang Yuxin, a member of the Kunming Blue Sky Emergency Coordination Center in Yunnan Province, said that taking mine exploration as an example, the internal structure of the cave is complex, and there is no communication signal. After entering, it is easy to get lost, and there may be air scarcity or landslides. Once tourists are trapped, it is very difficult to search and rescue.
Who’s to blame for swimming in "Wonderland" but encountering danger?
Areas that are not suitable for travel have become popular tourist attractions, and tourists’ expectations for visiting "fairyland" have evolved into a tragedy of encountering danger. Who will be responsible for this?
At one time, Longcaogou was dubbed as "a good place to spend the summer" and "a little-known secret place to play with water" on social platforms, but these recommendations usually made no mention of the fact that Longcaogou was prone to natural disasters such as mudslides and flash floods during the flood season, and even undertook local flood discharge tasks.
"The product development, service management, system norms and other aspects of this kind of scenic spot are imperfect and unsystematic." Yin Jie said that becoming a punch-in point in online celebrity depends largely on the "online celebrity spillover" effect and the "filter beautification" effect, that is, the fan effect of the recommender and the beauty function of the lens.
Wang Xudong, a lawyer of Beijing Dongwei Law Firm, said that the "wild" scenic spot can not be turned into a punching point in online celebrity without the sharing of some bloggers on social platforms and the promotion of the platform based on algorithms. In the face of the massive information released by users, it may be harsh to ask the platform to actively delete each recommended scenic spot after risk assessment. "However, if a user complains or reports the danger of the site, the platform has the obligation to confirm and review it in time, and cannot let itself go." Wang Xudong said.
Yin Jie believes that tourists who travel after watching recommended videos have a safety accident, which belongs to "multiple causes and one effect". It is impossible to judge that the safety accident must be caused by information publishers or social platforms, especially in the case of undeveloped scenic spots and no complete supporting facilities.
In the travel itinerary provided by many tourists who witnessed the Pengzhou flood, the reporter saw that on the same day, they participated in the trip of "Cool Walking, Zhongba Forest+Longcaogou" of a travel agency. In this regard, Wang Xudong analyzed that travel agencies have the obligation to ensure the safety of tourists, and should fully inform the common risks in tourist routes and take effective protective measures. If the travel agency fails to fulfill the relevant obligations, causing personal injury and property loss to tourists, it should bear the corresponding liability for compensation.
The popularity of "wild" scenic spots has also revealed that some tourists have poor safety awareness. "As a person with full capacity for civil conduct, tourists should have the ability of independent judgment, improve their safety awareness and be more awed by nature. If tourists are still willful after receiving sufficient risk warnings, they should be responsible for it. " Wang Xudong said.
Weave the safety management protection net together.
The reporter found on the social platform that although Longcaogou is no longer recommended as a scenic spot, there are still many other "wild" scenic spots that are continuously shared and recommended, covering ruins, caves, jungles, canyons and other places. In the context of global tourism, the safety management protection network of "wild" scenic spots needs to be woven together by the government, platforms, travel agencies and tourists.
"Most of these scenic spots are located in remote areas. In case of danger, rescue may be difficult. It is extremely necessary for relevant departments to take effective preventive measures in advance." Wang Xudong said.
Yin Jie also said that government departments should do a good job in comprehensive management, risk monitoring and early warning of scenic spots and non-scenic spots, conduct a comprehensive investigation of potential risks in tourist reception places, strengthen risk information monitoring in conjunction with hydrology, meteorology, transportation, geology, emergency management and other departments, release early warning information in time, implement early hidden danger control measures, and build an emergency response system.
"Sharing risks and difficult adventure routes without explanation will often make tourists ignore potential risks and increase the difficulty of on-site dissuasion." Yin Jie said that for social platforms, we should focus on understanding and mastering the potential risks of tourist reception places, and add risk tips and safety knowledge popularization to content recommendation. When choosing routes and destinations, travel agencies need to comprehensively consider potential risks, surrounding emergency rescue facilities, and territorial safety rescue capabilities, and at the same time clearly inform tourists of possible risks and countermeasures.
The safety awareness of tourists is related to their own safety. Yin Jie believes that tourists should establish a "global" risk awareness, that is, they should recognize that risks may occur at any moment, strengthen self-protection, obtain extensive risk information before visiting, improve their travel emergency skills, reasonably choose tour routes, and abide by tour norms.