Safety first at Ongava

At Ongava Tented Camp, which is one of the four finalists in the Responsible Tourism Awards (RTA) for 2017, it is all about the safety of their guests.

Ongava Tented Camp is one of four pristine lodges in the 30 000-hectare Ongava Private Game Reserve and border of the Etosha National Park near the Andersson Gate.

The camp consists of nine comfortable luxury tents each with a private veranda.

All the en-suite tents also have a view of the waterhole that is not only frequented by lions, but also by elephants, rhinos, black-faced impala and waterbuck.

According to Ongava’s director of operations Stuart Crawford, Ongava Tented Camp is a luxury bush camp which is open to the African wild.

“It has a true safari feel to it, as it has no fences protecting it from the wilds of the Namibian bush. It is one of the few places in Namibia where you can sleep in a tent and lions and other animals in the African bush can wander by unhindered. Our safety protocols which allow guests to experience this true safari unhindered by fences and barriers, I think is what makes Ongava Tented Camp a very special place.”

Crawford says because there are no fences surrounding the camp the safety protocols for safe movement on the camp are quite stringent.

He explains that during the days and evenings - dependent on the threat level - all guests are escorted by armed, trained guides.

Also emergency horns are placed in all the rooms and any guests in the camp can use the emergency horn to raise alarm if they feel unsafe or require assistance.

Furthermore, a detailed safety briefing and room orientation is carried out upon the arrival of guests explaining the use of the emergency horn and what to do in case of an emergency, says Crawford.

“Part of the safety briefing is to explain to guests the possible dangers of staying at Ongava Tented Camp, and thus making sure that they are aware of the do's and don’ts around the camp.”

He says that due to the nature of the camp, once guests are in their rooms after dinner they are asked not to leave their rooms. If they need to summon assistance, they must use the emergency horns.

He further explains that with regards to safety measures on game drives that safety talks are carried out prior to game drives and that vehicles also carry first aid kits.

Crawford further says that Ongava Tented Camp has a set of brand new Toyota Land Cruiser game viewers to make sure that all guests are taken on safari in safe, roadworthy vehicles.

He added that all the guides are experienced and therefore they are capable of reading animal behaviour in order to keep their guests safe.

According to Crawford all management and senior staff at Ongava Tented Camp are also required to hold a first aid certificate.

“We work with E-Med Rescue 24, and have a standard policy in place that allows us to call telephonically for medical advice in the case of a medical emergency.”

He further explained that the camp has an evacuation plan in place with E-Med Rescue 24. Should guests fall ill or require an emergency evacuation, the company will either dispatch an ambulance or air ambulance to assist.

With regards to road safety Crawford said that roads at the Ongava Game Reserve are regularly maintained and are clearly marked.

Ongava Game Reserve advises and recommends that guests arrive before sunset, and avoid driving at night.

“We have a 24/7 emergency phone, on which a staff member is always available to assist guests.”

The other three finalists of the RTA are Gondwana Etosha Safari Lodge in the Oshikoto Region, Jackalberry Lodge in the Zambezi Region, and Wilderness Safari Hoanib Skeleton Coast in Kunene Region.

The winner will be announced at the official opening of the Namibia Tourism Expo on 31 May.

The winner is determined according to the criteria of Eco Awards Namibia and this year the focus is on safe travel which is also the theme of the 2017 Namibia Tourism Expo.

ELLANIE SMIT