What's an emergency? Well it can be different things to different people, it could involve your health, your belongings or you, but whatever the circumstance you should be as best prepared before you travel and on arrival in your destination so that should the unfortunate occur you are able to deal with it effectively. An emergency event can happen anywhere, whether you are volunteering aborad or just living at home in your own country, the difference is that when you are a volunteer abroad you are ikely to be in unfamiliar surroundings and unsure what action to take unless you have made some preparations befoe hand. Some volunteer organsiations have representatives in the country where you will volunteer and they will often be your first point of contact should something happen where help and useful advice is needed.
There follows some recommended actions for you to take which should help you deal with unforeseen events whilst you are travelling and volunteering.
1) Find out where your nearest embassy is located in the country or places you are travelling to, write down the address and if you have time find out how to get there and the contact telephone numbers. If you are a British national then you an use the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website
here...
2) Get travel insurance which includes emergency repatriation back home to your own country should you fall seriously ill.
3) Make up a list of important telephone numbers such as your travel insurance number, a home contact number for the UK for emergencies, a contact number for the airline you have bought your ticket, any lost/stolen debit or credit card contact numbers, the number for reporting lost/stolen travellers cheques and any other useful numbers that you feel are relevant to you. It will only be one piece of paper. Make an extra copy of this before you travel too and take both copies with you. We have drawn up a simple form for you to complete in our checklists section if you require it.
1) Register yourself at your embassy. You should also take a copy of your passport for their records.
2) If you have an in-country co-ordinator who is there to help you should anything go wrong then give them a copy of the list of important telephone numbers that you made before travelling.
3) Keep a copy of important telephone numbers on your person for easy reference should you need any of them.
It depends on the emergency, but it will be important to stay calm and to obtain help and assistance as soon as you are able.
If it is health-related, get treated as soon as possible and notify your travel insurance company as soon as you can (get someone else to do it if you can't).
Report anything lost or stolen to the police as soon as you can. You will need police reports to make claims against losses. If you have one, your in-country co-ordinator may be able to assist you with this if there is a language barrier.
If you are the victim of more serious crime then you should definitely seek advice from any in-country co-ordinator and your embassy, take friends with you for support.