This not only flattens out the arrival pattern, it also “has the benefit of guests spending more money inside the building,” and helping to fund security enhancements. Mind Over Matter Consultancy’s Chris Kemp called for the creation of one unified document bringing together existing security and safety guides, while Sharkey suggested venues could have a star rating like hotels, so touring artists would know what level of facilities to expect. Rockhal’s Olivier Toth noted that of the millions of major events held across the globe, “I can count on my fingers the number of attacks, so there is a risk we could be overdoing it.” But he conceded, “Next time there’s an attack, it won’t be seen that way – it’s difficult to find the balance.” Ultimately, concluded Kemp, it’s best to avoid responding to the methodology of individual attacks, but instead to formulate a coherent plan with all venue staff to be prepared for any eventuality. “These attacks,” he said, “are random and unpredictable. But our response isn’t.” E3S’s programme of panels was punctuated with a number of specialist presentations in which guest speakers informed delegates of the work they are involved in to improve safety and security at key buildings and events.
Behavioural Detection – Andrew Palmer, Gatwick Airport Palmer, who leads Gatwick’s border security team, reported on the airport’s person assessment screening system (PASS) and how it can be applied to live events. PASS, he explained, is basically “people watching,” and involves his team of civilian behaviour detection officers (BDOs) looking for any deviation from normal or “baseline” behaviour. Some deviation from the baseline is normal, he said – but if someone demonstrates “frequent, excessive” abnormal behaviour, his BDOs will engage the person with a “resolution conversation” aimed at ascertaining the reason why they are behaving oddly. Palmer stated that hundreds of people had been arrested as a result of behavioural detection at Gatwick. He said: “Have we stopped something going bang at the airport? We don’t know. Have we stopped hostile reconnaissance? Yes, we have. We never find out if our BDOs have stopped an attack, and that’s fine – but to have that security culture, that’s enough.”
IQ Magazine November 2017
Advances in Festival Security – Chris Kemp, Mind Over Matter Consultancy Kemp warned that the industry is becoming too concerned with terrorism to the extent that “we’re starting to lose sight of crowd management and other areas of safety.” Presenting the results of a Yourope Event Safety Group survey, he revealed that European festivals spend an average of 73% on monitoring and surveillance; 23% on safety and crowd management; and just 3% on training staff. “After Bataclan, everything is focused on counterterrorism,” he said. “What we need to do is create a balance between all the elements.” Acknowledging that “most people feel safer with a police presence” he reported that in 2015, of the 100 festivals surveyed, none had armed police on-site. By 2016, that had risen to 20, and in 2017, it was 93 out of 100.
Crowd Dynamics at Venues, Events & Festivals – Simon Ancliffe, Movement Strategies Ancliffe detailed safety risks arising specifically from the presence of high-density crowds caused by vehicles; slips and trips; and crowd collapses/crushes, and how they can be minimised. “Most deaths at events are from compressive asphyxia, which is what happens when you design a crowd-flow system that isn’t balanced,” he said. “It’s a reasonable response to move in a disorderly fashion when you think you might die – but we can design our way out of that.”
Drones, the Threat from Above – Martin Lanni, Quantum Aviation Lanni observed that the use of drones worldwide is “increasing exponentially,” meaning that venues have to “get out of a 2D-mindset and into 3D… the threat is coming from above now.” Risk assessments should now consider the possibility of a drone attack, he stated. “The threat is real and it’s increasing,” he told E3S. The solution? Engage with experts, police, local aviation authorities, and communications regulators: “don’t underestimate the power of education,” he urged.
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