Shetland Islands Aim to Avoid Oily Image

Scotland’s picturesque Shetland Islands, where the storm-wrecked oil tanker Braer earlier this month poured 25 million gallons of crude oil into the Bay of Quendale, has launched an $800,000 advertising campaign--a huge amount by local standards--to try to safeguard the islands’ tourism industry, valued at more than $35 million. Local tourist officials say their hope is to avoid the experience of Alaska, which has struggled to lure back tourists since the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill, the biggest in U.S history. The wildlife- and nature-rich Shetland Islands expected 56,000 visitors this summer, primarily from England, Scotland and Scandinavia, and officials are trying to emphasize that the area remains ripe with bird and sea life. Nature herself corrected much of the problem as ferocious winds and surf broke up the last of the oil slick. Yet conservationists warn that while, on the surface, casualties appear limited to nearly 800 birds and a handful of otters and gray seals, long-term ecological impacts are “anybody’s guess,” said Peter Ellis, director of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Travel Quiz: In what direction and into which body of water does the Nile River flow?

Flight Fright: North America is the safest place in the world to fly and Africa is the least, according to a new book examining airline accidents during the 1970s and ‘80s. “Why Airplanes Crash: Aviation Safety in a Changing World” (Oxford University Press, $24.95), by Clinton Oster, professor of environmental affairs at Indiana University, Kurt Zorn, also of IU, and John Strong of the College of William & Mary, is based on research collected from 15,000 accidents from around the world during the last two decades. Air travel in Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand is almost as safe as the United States and Canada, but the rate of fatal accidents in Eastern Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America was about four times higher. Africa had the highest number of fatalities, at a rate that was 15 times higher than North America. Pilot error was found to be the leading cause of fatal accidents in most parts of the world, although in Africa the leading cause was terrorism. In the Middle East, terrorism was second to weather and terrain. Engine failure brought down more planes in Eastern Europe than anything else. Oster suggested that travelers who must fly in more dangerous areas select their airline carefully. “If you’re flying on a carrier based in a safe region into a region that is not so safe, you’re considerably better off than if you fly on a carrier based in the not-so-safe region,” he said, adding that in general, large carriers tend to be safer than smaller ones.

Quick Fact: A recent study of major cities by Detroit-based Traffic Safety Now found that San Diego residents ranked first in seat belt use (76%) and Columbus, Ohio, ranked last (49%).

Paris Music Hall Will Stay: Paris’ famed Olympia music hall, where such French greats as Edith Piaf and Yves Montand sang, has been designated an historical monument to save it from destruction. Until a dozen years ago, when larger halls with equipment more suitable for rock music began to take precedence, the Olympia was the foremost venue for performers. It opened in the center of Paris in 1893 with a performance by painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s dancer friend La Goulue. The landmark designation came after the block on which the Olympia sits was sold to property developers. The new owners will now be forced to maintain it as a concert hall under French laws governing historical monuments.

Fiji Hurricane Update: Only two of Fiji’s 104 resorts remain closed as a result of Hurricane Kina, which killed 23 Fijians and caused moderate damage to structures around the islands when it hit three weeks ago. Closed for repairs are the Marlin Bay resort and Moody’s Namena. Marlin Bay is expected to open Feb. 15, and the Namena resort will open May 15, according to officials of the Fiji Visitors Bureau. Other hotels and resorts were unaffected or only modestly damaged, according to a visitors bureau spokeswoman.

Priciest, Cheapest Cities: The Japanese cities of Tokyo and Osaka remain the world’s most expensive metropolises for visitors, according to a survey of 99 cities published by a Geneva-based private consulting firm. But the survey by Corporate Resources Group said that shifts in exchange rates--which have strengthened the dollar while devaluing some of Europe’s currencies--have made some European cities cheaper for U.S. dollar-paying visitors than they were six months ago. For instance, the price of visiting Stockholm--once the most expensive European city--has fallen 13.2% in the past six months. London and Helsinki, Finland, are 8% cheaper than last May, the survey said. At the low end of the scale, the Colombian capital of Bogota is the least expensive of all the cities monitored.

New Science Center Near New York: A new science center in New Jersey’s popular Liberty State Park--also home of the Statue of Liberty and the Ellis Island Immigration Museum--will open today on New York Harbor. The center attempts to merge fun and practicality in a series of “interactive” exhibits. For example, a 4 1/2-foot globe that looks like it was made from an Erector set grows rapidly to 18 feet in diameter, dwarfing visitors at the entrance to Liberty Science Center and demonstrating how architecture can be “folded.” In another exhibit, visitors operate race cars around a track--but they must move the cars at speeds that maximize fuel consumption. For information: (201) 200-1000.

Comparatively Speaking: States in which the travel industry generated the greatest number of jobs in 1990, the most recent year for which figures are available: California (611,600 jobs); Florida (461,600); Texas (345,800); New York (282,600); Nevada (241,800); Illinois (210,800); New Jersey (163,400); Georgia (166,900); Virginia (155,100); Pennsylvania (154,200). (Source: U.S. Travel Data Center.)

Quiz Answer: The Nile flows generally from south to north into the Mediterranean Sea.