Plitvice Lakes National Park

On Tuesday, we went to Plitvice Lakes National Park, located about 140 kilometers south of Zagreb. The park includes 16 lakes that change colors depending on what minerals and organisms are in the water. The lakes are linked by waterfalls and cascades, surrounded by lush vegetation, with 1400 different plant species and 55 different species of European orchids. The water rushing over the plants and rocks form travertine, a type of porous rock. Plitvice is also known as the site of the first victim of the civil war in former Yugoslavia that started in 1991.



While at the park, the Public Health students were to assess potential injury prevention strategies. Here are some brief observations to help you understand the dangerous aspects of this park:

• There are handrails and guardrails on the most dangerous parts, but it would be helpful to have more throughout the trails and along the cliffs.
  



• The trails can be rough - usually dirt or gravel trails that can have sharp rocks and tree roots sticking out of the ground.


• There are no warning signs to alert visitors to the start of the steps on the walkway, how the wooden footbridge can become slippery from the splashes of the waterfalls, or of the steep cliffs.

• Nearly half of the park visitors (1 million) come during June and July, which could be dangerous with such large crowds.


• There is only one ambulance.


• The nearest hospital is 40 km away. If there were a very serious injury that needed prompt medical attention, this distance may be too far.

During our visit, we were able to see firsthand how important safety is at the park. In a group just ahead of ours, a woman slipped on the wooden footbridge that winds around the lakes. She hit her head on the bridge, and was carried back to the dirt trail's end to be treated before being carried up the trail on a gurney. Seeing an accident like that makes everyone aware of how important it is to be attentive and watch your step.

To prevent injuries at the Plitvice Lakes National Park, we feel that there are two simple and feasible strategies that could be pursued. First, warning signs could be posted to alert visitors to the start of the steps on the footbridge, the steep cliffs, and how the bridges can become slippery when wet. Another idea is to add more handrails. Even having rope lining the trails could be helpful for park visitors.

Also, the park is not the most handicapped accessible facility due to the characteristics and layout of the park. Given that it is a natural setting, there is not much that can be done to make it more accessible. Some of the hills would be too steep for anyone with a physical disability, and after the dirt trails end, the wooden bridge starts and has steps that would not be accessible in a wheelchair. While we expected no one in a wheelchair would be able to maneuver much of the terrain past the park entrance and the first views of the lake, there was one visitor in a motorized wheelchair that was able to go all the way to the lower part of the trails at lake level.

- Elizabeth