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Crisis Management: Reporting Slope Deaths
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March 20, 2006
Two fatal accidents the same day at Northeast resorts not far from one another have underscored the importance of having a crisis management plan in place.
Olympic snowboardcross racer Jonatan Johansson of Sweden died after crashing during a warm-up run Sunday morning, March 12 at Whiteface in New York's Adirondack Mountains. Johansson, 26, had finished 12th in snowboardcross at Torino.
At Jiminy Peak in western Massachusetts, a 15-year-old snowboarding instructor, Alexander M. Bashara of nearby Lanesborough, was killed in an accident that afternoon. Both men were wearing helmets.
Just a few weeks earlier, Sandy Caligiore, director of communications for the Olympic Regional Development Authority, which manages Whiteface, was one of four public relations pros conducting a crisis management seminar at the National Ski Areas Association winter regional meeting at Killington, Vt. Among those taking part was the new marketing director at Jiminy, Betsy Strickler.
Caligiore said his policy always has been to be proactive about such incidents, notifying the media as soon as possible. "Ultimately that information is going to be made public whether it's the day it happens or a week later," he said. "It's all about having rapport.
"We want the press to be fair to us when there's good news, and we have to be square with the press when there's bad news," he said. A handful of media representatives had either telephoned or e-mailed their support for his policies after recent crises, said Caligiore.
Strickler, who began work at Jiminy less than three months ago, said Jiminy's policy is to have a press release ready to go, but in this case did not immediately issue it "out of deference to the family."
Because of Bashara's age, Jiminy officials telephoned the local high school and middle school principals Sunday night to alert them about the tragedy, Strickler said. The resort also brought in a grief counselor to help its staff cope with the loss.
Sally Johnstone, Strickler's predecessor, was also one of the leaders of the Killington seminar. Strickler said that when explaining the policy to her before leaving her position, Johnstone said, "Hopefully you'll never have to use this."
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R.I.P. Matthew
Linehan
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Posted by: Kevin Linehan | April 19, 2006 08:55 AM
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