Nobody with good news calls in the middle of the night. ﾠAs a father of college-age children, the late-night sound of the telephone ringing was chilling. ﾠOur youngest son and about hundred or so of his closest friends from college had caught a spring break cruise ship ride from Florida to the Bahamas. ﾠBefore he left I talked to him about all of the ﾓbe aware ofs.ﾒ ﾠBut he, of course, was 20 and far wiser in the world than his parents, so ﾓnot to worryﾒ was his reply. ﾠHe didnﾴt know that his world was about to turn upside down.
Since Natalee Holloway disappeared nine months ago on a high school graduation trip to Aruba, personal safety on getaway trips has become a part of our national subconscious. ﾠFrom Panama City, Florida, to Cancun, Mexico — 100,000 young Americans travel here every spring breakﾗand to points, ports, and beaches around the world, the risk to those seeking the sun-drenched 24/7 ﾓparty of all parties,ﾒ no matter what their age, are greater than ever. ﾠA little common sense and preparation can save you from a world of hurt and pain, and can help insure that your trip to some hot beach is not the trip from hell.
Consider these factors:
1. ﾠﾠKnow where youﾴre going before you start. ﾠUse the Internet to research the city, state, or country that youﾴre traveling to and know both the good and the bad about your destination. ﾠSome countries consider the use of drugs or the abuse of alcohol to be a very serious offense, something that can get you thrown in jail for weeks if not years. ﾠIn other countries the authorities will try to set you up in a sting-like operation, but their purpose is to force you or your parents to pay a bribe to gain your release. ﾠOther demands can also be made of you, demands you donﾴt even want to think about. ﾠBut whether you think of them or not, they are real, as is the threat to your personal safety. ﾠAnd if another language is spoken at your location, learn a few phrases like ﾓI need the policeﾒ or ﾓI need a doctorﾒ or just ﾓHelp me.ﾒ
2. ﾠﾠInsure that someone at home has all of your travel and contact information, including a copy of your passport, the front and back of your credit cards and identification cards, and information as to where you are staying and who youﾴll be with. ﾠIf this data changes, find an Internet kiosk and send the new information along so that you can be found or helped should the need arise.
3. ﾠﾠCell phones are great, but many wonﾴt work outside the U.S. or need to be set up in advance of your travel. ﾠDonﾴt assume that your phone has this capability. Call your cellular provider to arrange such service for the length of your trip.
4. ﾠﾠThere is always safety in numbers. ﾠDonﾴt travel alone and try to travel in threes. ﾠNever leave your wingman is a lesson naval aviator Tom Cruise learned the hard way in Top Gun. ﾠThe idea of three is the hope that no matter how crazy you and the situation get, out of three friends, one can be counted on to be the voice of reason. ﾠIn a worst case scenario, one can run for help while the second stays and stands by the third. ﾠRemember, youﾴre all in it together. You should always be within eyesight of each other. ﾠAnd donﾴt accept any offer to leave with a person youﾴve just met. ﾠThink of Natalee Hollowayﾴs last known ride. ﾠ
5. ﾠﾠAvoid using stairwells or elevators by yourself. ﾠDonﾴt tell any ﾓnew friendﾒ where you are staying. ﾠPut your valuables in the hotelﾴs safe, not under your pillow. ﾠRemember not all ﾓtaxisﾒ are really taxis. ﾠInsure that youﾴre taking a safe mode of travel every time you go out at night and donﾴt open your hotel door to strangers. ﾠIf the person knocking on your door says heﾴs with the hotel, call the front desk to check before you unlock your door.
6. ﾠﾠDrink only from sealed containers or get your drinks directly from the bartender. ﾠAnd donﾴt leave your drink unattended ﾖ you donﾴt know what someone could put into it. ﾠDate rape drugs are many and varied, with the most common being ﾓGHBﾒ and ﾓRohypnol,ﾒ the latter of which is also called circles, the forget me pill, La Rocha, lunch money drug, R-2, rib, roach-2, rope, robutal, roofies, rophies, row-shay, ruffles, and wolfies. ﾠThese drugs are used to facilitate rape because they make the assault easier. ﾠThis ﾓanesthesiaﾒ type of drug renders the victim physically incapacitated or helpless and unable to withhold consent to sexual activity. ﾠRohypnol is one of the drugs most commonly implicated in drug-facilitated rape. ﾠIt can mentally and physically paralyze an individual. ﾠEffects of the drug are of particular concern in combination with alcohol and can lead to anterograde amnesia, where events that occurred during the time the drug was in effect are forgotten by the victim. ﾠIf your drink tastes or looks different than it should, e.g., salty, foamy, cloudy, or has some type of residue in it, just dump it. ﾠ
7. ﾠﾠLastly, remember Spiderman. ﾠSpidy had a sixth sense; he instinctively knew when trouble was around. ﾠAnd so do you. ﾠBut we donﾴt always listen to that still, small voice within that says ﾓthis could be trouble.ﾒ ﾠIf you think youﾴre being followed, go into a safe place and ask for assistance, and always look sober and look like you know where you are and what youﾴre doing. ﾠYou only need watch the predators in any vacation bar or on any ﾓbooze cruiseﾒ that lurk just outside of your vision; theyﾴre watching your every move. ﾠPredators look for the lost, the weak, the vulnerableﾗusually the inebriated. ﾠYou donﾴt want to look like a zebra or gazelle thatﾴs separated and lost from her herd or be too forward toward strangers. ﾠYour overture of friendship to some can be a sign of vulnerability to a predator, and they can be very cunning as they work ever so stealthily to cut you out of the herd. ﾠYou donﾴt need to be paranoid. ﾠJust know your surroundings, your limitations, set boundaries, and stay with your wingmen.
Hundreds of holidays, vacations, or breaks become nightmares because of behavior, accidents, alcohol, and drugs. ﾠAlmost 3,000 Americans are arrested overseas every year, many for possession of very small amounts of narcotics. ﾠAccidents account for hundreds more victims, including drowning in pools and the ocean, automobile accidents, jet skis, and falls from buildings. ﾠMany threats exist to any vacationer who doesnﾴt put his personal safety above his desire to party. ﾠIn parts of Mexico, for example, one can easily become the victim of robbery, rape, kidnapping, and murder ﾖ all of which are well documented. ﾠAnother little known safety issue in Mexico is the dozens of Americans who have fallen from the balconies of their hotels, this because many such balconies have rails that are only two or three feet tall (the U.S. standard is 42 inches). ﾠYet another issue is the lack of safety glass in hotel windows and sliding glass doors. ﾠThis accounted for our sonﾴs call from Nassau. ﾠﾓDad,ﾒ he said, ﾓwe were wrestling around in the hotel room after a few drinks and my friend, while bouncing on the bed (and off the walls), fell through the sliding glass door onto the balcony.ﾒ ﾠEvidently he just missed tumbling over the balcony (they were on the 6th floor), but the glass broke into large shards. ﾠOne big, knife-like piece cut his arm like a surgeonﾴs scalpel, and he was bleeding badly. ﾠThey wrapped a towel around the bleeding limb and caught a cab to the local hospital. ﾠAn hour later I got another call ﾖ Jonﾴs friend was in surgery. ﾠﾓIﾴll call you back,ﾒ I said, ﾓbut how do I find you?ﾒ ﾠﾓDad,ﾒ he said with some frustration, ﾓweﾴre the only two white guys in the hospital ﾖ theyﾴll find us.ﾒ
Jon and his friend were on the next flight out of Nassau, and were met by my wife and his friendﾴs mother at Washington National airport. ﾠHis mother had already contacted a local surgeon, and they were soon getting a review of his injuries. ﾠThere was still glass in the wound that had been sewed up. ﾠﾓAnother 12 hours or so,ﾒ the surgeon said, ﾓand he would have lost the use of his arm.ﾒ ﾠRemember, if seriously injured; get home for medical aid as soon as you can. ﾠOh, and donﾴt drink so much that you fall through glass doorsﾅ.
As for our other two children, Jeff got deathly ill on bad food while on spring break. ﾠAnd, while on a medical missions spring break trip to Haiti, our daughter Jenna had a local woman thrust a baby into her arms, begging Jenna to take the infant back to America as it would surely die in Haiti. ﾠChallenges come in many forms, shapes, and sizes.
Alcohol and injuries go hand in hand. ﾠDuring spring breaks the average male reports consuming 18 alcoholic drinks per day and the average woman 10 such drinks per day. ﾠOne half of all men and 40% of all women drank until they became sick or passed out at least once. ﾠIf youﾴre drinking, donﾴt do it on an empty stomach and for guys, limit yourself to one drink per hour and for women, one drink per 1 ﾽ hours. ﾠNurse a Coke or two. ﾠDonﾴt mix your drinks (e.g., beer and rum) and if you slur your words, walk funny, or feel sick, stop drinking. ﾠYou canﾴt drink yourself sober, but you can drink yourself into the hospital or worse. ﾠCar accidents, alcohol intoxication, broken limbs, and date rapes are all the results of alcoholic abuse. ﾠAlcohol is implicated in the three major causes of death among young people in America, including homicide, suicide, and accidentsﾗincluding alcohol poisoning. ﾠ
Many see Spring Break as a time to blame their behavior on the booze, the music, or even the moon. ﾠYour natural inhibitions may become fuzzy or even disappear when you believe that the party climate gives you an excuse not to be safe in all regards. ﾠSexually transmitted diseases are on the rise around the world. ﾠIn the U.S. alone, 5.5 million new cases of genital herpes, one of the major causes of cervical cancer, are identified every year. ﾠOther types of sexually transmitted infections, to include AIDS, can result from just one unguarded night of fun under the sun. ﾠWere you to be the victim of a sexual assault, do not expect a great amount of help from your hotel or local law enforcement in second and third world countries. ﾠHotels will be quick to suggest you immediately go home, this to preserve their ﾓreputation,ﾒ while local police may explain the long process that you must go through to identify and prosecute your assailant. ﾠTheir implied message to you is ﾓbe glad youﾴre alive, count this as a learning experience, and pack up and go home.ﾒ ﾠCase closed as far as they are concerned. ﾠ
And the predators? ﾠWell, they continue to prowl. ﾠThereﾴs always another plane landing with people just looking for fun, a continuing source of potential victims for such predators.
Just like you know the amount of time that you can spend in the sun before you burn, you should recognize the pitfalls that await those who donﾴt know their own limitations, who donﾴt set boundaries, and who violate the rules of safe traveling. ﾠNo one wants to cramp your style and keep you from having a good time on break or vacation. ﾠWe just want you to come back safe and in one piece. ﾠWhen youﾴre in an unfamiliar location and perhaps under the influence of something or someone, your chances of becoming a victim rise exponentially. ﾠBe smart and be safe. ﾠGood judgment and being responsible for yourself and your travel companions can help to insure that you get everything out of your vacation that you seek. ﾠBut nothing more.
By Clint Van Zandt
MSNBC analyst & former FBI profiler
Email Clint at CVZ@msnbc.com
Clint is a frequent contributor to The Abrams Report, Weeknights at 4 & 6 p.m. ET on MSNBC TV
Clint Van Zandt is an MSNBC analyst. He is the founder and president of Van Zandt Associates Inc. Van Zandt and his associates also developed LiveSecure.org, a Website dedicated “to develop, evaluate, and disseminate information to help prepare and inform individuals concerning personal and family security issues.” During his 25-year career in the FBI, Van Zandt was a supervisor in the FBI’s internationally renowned Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. He was also the FBI’s Chief Hostage Negotiator and was the leader of the analytical team tasked with identifying the “Unabomber.”
