Robbery and shooting in Providenciales, TCI

I have been following this crime story for a few days to see how it played out. I still get news feeds daily from the Turks and Caicos Islands so it is still in media attention.

Well an American tourist was shot during a robbery in Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands.  Not sure where exactly but since I know the area well, I can only suspect his 143 A.M. Friday morning walk was in the commercial area and he was heading back to his hotel. (Google this to get more info)

Long story short, after triage in Provo, he was transferred by air ambulance to the States to get the needed treatment for the gun shot.  He is recovering and will likely be transported to his home in Alabama for his needed rehab.

This sad news is nothing new. Crime and tourism is still common, and despite the relative crime-free TCI, the State Department reports "Crime in TCIS is low but increasing."

The point here is that we shouldn't put our guard down when travelling for vacation.  Some research has even found that domestic tourism and international tourism are rated the same as far as safety is concerned (Floyd et al., 2004).

The second point here is an economic one.  The TCI is not inexpensive.  The average summer price (off-season) for hotels in Grace Bay is probably $500 a night.  Consider that when you pick up a local newspaper and see job advertisements offering $6.50-$7.00 US for general labour or housekeeping positions.  What, don't read the local paper while on vacation?

Let me conclude this by saying I hope the gentleman recovers from the crime and that they capture the individual responsible.  But in order for crime to be reduced, we must adopt a more equitable policy in tourism.  The United Nations World Tourism Organization reports:

"Tourism is one of the strongest drivers of world trade and prosperity. Poverty alleviation is one of the greatest global challenges. Despite turbulent times for the world’s economy, these basic facts are unlikely to change. Focusing the wealth creating power of tourism on people most in need remains an immense task and opportunit(y)."


Source: Floyd, M. F., Gibson, H., Pennington-Gray, L., & Thapa, B. (2004). The effect of risk perceptions on intentions to travel in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 15(2-3), 19-38. 

Costa Rica Crime

We had pondered visiting Costa Rica this winter, but decided to go elsewhere.  It is a beautiful country, with friendly people, but alas, it is becoming more and more Americanized every year.

Tourists are loving it to Death.

Crime is everywhere and this report from Tico Times highlights (lowlights) 2014 Crimes.

TCI Crime Update

It has been several weeks since the American tourist was shot in Grace Bay, Providenciales, TCI.  According to one online TCI newspaper (the Turks and Caicos Sun).  There was a lot of misinformation distributed in the initial hours of the shooting. Yet a different view is expressed by the competing news paper, the Turks and Caicos Weekly News who argue that the Government is not doing enough to fight crime.

I am not going to argue one news paper's reporting against the other, but anyone in the States know news is presented differently when Fox or CNN reports on something.

Shatter

 Time to recognize my brother for his acting in 

Shatter (2022)

Shatter

Madness Has Many Faces.

SYNOPSIS: A small-town detective must follow the cryptic clues of an escaped schizophrenic patient to solve a bizarre murder only to unveil a revelation even more bizarre than the crime itself.

YEAR PRODUCED: 2020

RUNTIME: 91

GENRE:  Horror >> Psychological,   Thriller,  

RATING: NR

DIRECTOR: Chris Schwartz

WRITER(s): Chris Schwartz, Donovan Schwartz

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER(s): Chris Schwartz

PRODUCER(s): David Wigfield

MAIN CAST: Bob Strouse (Detective Matthews), Mercer Bristow (David Willard)

OTHER/SUPPORTING CAST: Joseph Veltre (Matthews Partner) Rod Egan (Chief) Scott Geiter (Dr. Vandenberg) Orris Knepp (Bruce Willard) C.J. Ramser (Chet) Julie Ufema (Miss Carly)

COMPOSER/ORIGINAL MUSIC: Chris Schwartz, Matt Ware

Watch the trailer here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igNphe9mBK8

And if you have Amazon, you can rent or buy it here.

Data Visualized

Need a quick map for the US?  Some data to play with?  Where is the violent Crime (think Nevada, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alaska)? You can break it down to counties too.

What are the growing jobs?  Well, check out DATA USA.

They just need some recreation stuff...

State Department Labels

So if you visit travel.state.gov, you will see the new travel advisory system.

It is meant to simplify the warnings our state department issues for Americans traveling abroad.  For instance Hurricane Irma hammered the Caribbean this past fall, so I should't plan to return to Tortola for one of the Full Moon Parties. (There is also the Bomba Shack.)

Trellis Bay

Bomba Shack

Crime is becoming another issue for many other vacation spots, so even popular Providenciales (TCI) has been issued a number 2!  I am heading to the UK later this summer and Terrorism is a threat there.

I wonder how others are warned about visiting the US?  UK warns its citizens about terrorism, health issues and natural disasters in the US.  See my prevsious post here.

A STUDY OF FRIGHT TOURISM DURING HALLOWE’EN

A STUDY OF FRIGHT TOURISM DURING HALLOWE’EN
is now published in the e-Review of Tourism Research (eRTR).

Abstract: Fright tourism is a lighter form of dark tourism. While similar elements of death and dying exist in both, fright tourism is a more entertaining version of the dark parent. Fright tourism occurs when a tourist seeks a scary opportunity for pleasure at a destination that may have a sinister history or may be promoted to have one. Since tourist motivation has been shown to be an important determinant of choice behavior, this research note explores the influence of fearful events in our world for a sample of spectators at a haunted attraction. Citing examples of crime, natural disasters, personal finances and others, a scale of fear is created.

Key words: fright tourism, dark tourism, haunted attractions, fear

Fear and Fright Tourism

What kind of fears do people have?  Do you think people who visit haunted attractions are fearless?  Or do they know (believe) that the haunted house will be scary but ultimately safe.  Last Hallowe'en we asked that question to visitors to Demented FX in Holyoke, MA.

Fear	N	Mean	SD
Crime (Murder, rape, theft, fraud)	171	5.80	2.86
Government (Corruption, privacy, immigration, trust, control)	170	6.07	3.22
Human-caused Disasters (Climate change, terrorism, war, environmental disaster)	171	7.01	2.53
Natural Disasters (Earthquakes, droughts, floods, hurricanes)	169	5.87	2.70
Personal Phobias (Tight spaces, darkness, insects)	166	5.42	3.17
Personal Health (Death, illness, injury)	166	5.33	3.04
Financial Future (Running out of money, loss of jobs, housing)	167	6.72	2.90
Technology (Artificial intelligence, invasion of privacy, cyber terrorism, drones)	167	4.50	2.98

Note: Scale 1-10 with ten most frightful.

Travel warning to the US

For UK citizens, you are warned not to travel to the US.

And not just for the virus but for terrorism in the US and crime too.  For terrorism you may want to check out our homeland security page for the current threats.

At least you can drink the water.  Well maybe,

For info on the virus, see WHO and the current situation report (67).

What is open for US travellers?

 Well, it looks like we can go to Somalia for a vacation!  No, well try Mexico, although I know someone who went to Cancun, caught virus and had to quarantine before heading home to New England.  So you might be safer in Somalia (even if it is a Level 4 - Do not travel based on Travel.state.gov.

Your call.  (Do not travel to Somalia due to COVID-19, crime, terrorism, civil unrest, health issues, kidnapping, and piracy.)

American Airlines has a weblink for info.

In any case get vaccinated, PLEASE!

and wear a mask.