The Threat of Terrorism in Planning Major Event Security

[Peter Tarlow]

Recent events around the world have proven once again that holding a major event is no easy matter.  Not only must a community deal with the event itself but there are always logistics, marketing, and public relations that go hand in hand with a major event.  To make matters even more challenging we live in a world of political unrest. Major events are of course targets for terrorism.  They also may incite local protests that have nothing to do with terrorism. These demonstrations are byproducts of the event and may occur before or during the event.  The demonstrators then use the event as a means to vent frustrations or as a means to piggyback on the event as a way of gaining added leverage or publicity. In all cases, not only is the event potentially harmed but the community and its tourism component’s reputation may also suffer.  To help guide you through some of the issues related to major event security, Tourism & More suggests the following. 

• Know what type of event you are holding.  The type of event and the type of public that the event will attract often is the first guideline to the type of security that you will need.  It is as important to know the amount of expected publicity that you expect the event to generate.  A good rule of thumb is that the greater the publicity generated by the event the great the likelihood of demonstration or security incident.

• Know the event’s timetable. Is this an all day event, does it draw mainly evening crowds.  Develop your security then in accordance not only with the event’s demographic make-up but also with the times and places, the “when’s” and “where’s” of the event.

• For how long is this event scheduled? The longer the event is scheduled the higher the chance that a mishap may occur.  If the event is an outdoor event with alcoholic beverages served, then consider not only the problem of protecting the event goers from those who may seek to sully the event but also protecting of the community from the event goers. 

• Know who is running the concessions and your private security.  How trustworthy are the people at the concession stands?   In an age of terrorism, background checks are necessary for everyone working a major event.   If an incident occurs few people will know who the concessionaires were, but the media will focus in on your community.  The key here is to realize that no matter whose fault an incident may be, it is the local tourism community that will suffer.  The same is true for private security firms.  Some firms do an excellent job in vetting their employees and in training them.  Other firms are much less reliable and a great deal of caution should be used.  Unfortunately more expensive does not always mean better. 

• Review all of the event’s structural parts.  Event security is not only about making sure that others do not succeed in damaging the event, it is also about making sure that the venue is safe and that the structure can support the number of people at the event.  There have been too many incidents in recent years of stages falling, fireworks setting off fires causing panics and people being trampled due to a lack of easy access exits, and other structural problems to simply assume that local fire departments of building inspectors will be able to foresee logistics and structural problems.

•  Have several plans in place and rehearse these.  Among the plans that you want in place is what do you do when the person who has been trained cannot do his/her task. Redundancy then is essential in tourism. Often event managers and security personnel are the only people who have access and knowledge of critical areas.  The question to consider is who will take over if these people should become incapable of doing their job?  Events demand backup teams and multiple forms or redundancy.  It is essential that your backup team know how to access not only needed equipment but also have a full list of contact and key people with whom they can consult.

• Make sure that the local authorities have as much information as possible.  Not only do you want local authorities to be able to move into a situation quickly, but also it is essential that they understand the consequences of their actions.  That means that in a tourism-oriented community what is seen on television becomes the narrative that is on the event.  In a perfect world police and other first responders should not have to worry about being part of a marketing team, but in a world of twenty-four hour seven-day a week news, they unfortunately have to be trained in how their words impact the community.

•  Be prepared for more than terrorism.  Issues such as vandalism, thievery, health-related issues can just as easily destroy an event and/or its host community’s reputation.   Be prepared to deal with everything from cyber sabotage to identity theft, from unintentional pandemics to intentional food poisoning.

• Determine who should be stationed where.   For example, entrances may need large muscular men while other parts of the event may need a different type of person.  In tourism we treat all people equally, but know that physically not all people are the same.   The essential here is finding the right person for the correct job.

• Combine machines and personnel to get the most security for the least cost.  There are times when metal detectors make a great deal of sense, but in an age of terrorism, metal detectors are not enough.   Trained personnel (and animals) are essential not only in making critical decisions but also spotting problems not picked up by the metal detector.

• Use the land and event local geography to your advantage.  Make sure that you find high spots in which to see the crowd, easy ingress and egress areas and control centers of communication.  Also have a way to clear spaces for first aid personnel, and other medical personnel should they be needed.  In making these determinations be clear as to the crowd’s demographic makeup and what problems this particular population will present.