Crowd Control: How Event Security Can Help

The thrill of attending a concert or event is usually following immediately by concerns for safety. Will there be enough security? What if the crowd gets wild? Does the facility have the proper means to evacuate should there be an emergency? Hiring highly trained New York event security will take away these questions knowing you are in good hands.

These concerns are all valid and in fact were the highlight of the investigation following the 1991 stampede at City College. Security was lacking at an event that was to benefit AIDS charities featured hip hop moguls of the 90’s. According to some reports the event was oversold. Another contributing factor to the stampede was the unusual layout of the Nat Holman Gymnasium. Gaining entrance to the gym required going down a set of stairs and through four doors; three of which were locked. As the crowd surged forward, the earliest patrons to enter were caught in this doorway. Nine people died and twenty nine more were injured.

As a result of this catastrophe, Judge Louis C. Benza, of the New York State Court of Claims issued a ruling placing 50 percent of the blame for those deaths on the venue’s owner, the City University of New York, and 50 percent on the event’s promoters.

After reviewing the circumstances that led to the tragedy, security experts expressed that the venue was poorly staffed. Ron Delsener, an experienced concert promoter, said that for a younger urban crowd like the one at City College, he would have used 1 guard per fifty fans. Other experts estimated that the number should have been closer to 1 in thirty. The event utilized only 124 New York City Police officers, campus security and private security officers combined to control more than 3000 attendees.

Crowd management also played a significant role in the stampede. According to experts, properly trained staff could have spotted the problem areas early and redirected the flow of traffic to a safer entrance point. If they had the use of bullhorns, they may have been able to halt the crowd from continuing to press forward into the descending stairwell. Staff members were not given cellular phones nor did they have two-way radios.

Call A Professional New York City Event Security Agency

Event security has forever changed as a result of this harsh lesson and others like it across the country. Building codes, crowd control and event management are now of the highest priority to help guarantee patrons that they will feel safe while attending their favorite events.

If you are planning an event in the New York City area and are looking to hire professionally trained security guards, contact Citadel Security Agency at (212) 509-5570. For over 20 years Citadel has been a leading special event security agency whose number priority is keeping the public safe and keeping the premise secure.