The push-to-talk system must be appropriately provisioned with talkgroup assignments that distribute communications across smaller clusters of staff. Because only one member of the group may request the floor and speak, all other members must wait their turn. As a crisis unfolds, push-to-talk systems can become overwhelmed quickly as staff members attempt to speak. The sizing of private critical-communications systems is a crucial consideration. Mega-event operators must ensure a private critical-communications system is deployed and all public-facing staff members are provided with push-to-talk group voice communications devices. In the case of the Astroworld music festival, the Houston Chronicle reports that not all of these staff members were equipped with push-to-talk devices. The Astroworld music festival security resources included more than 500 event security staff and 91 armed private security officers.Īlong with stewards, ushers, and concessions workers, these staff members act as the eyes and ears of the event-management team. Security staff, not surprisingly, is also significant. But the venue could accommodate up to 200,000 attendees. The New York Times reported that the Astroworld music festival drew a crowd of 50,000. The scale of a large-scale music festival is staggering. The private critical-communications system is the foundation for situational awareness and active response to a crisis.Įxcellent Private Critical-Communications Systems are Mandatory This gap may be responsible for a failure to silence the stage and begin an orderly evacuation. From afar, the event-management team appeared to lose overall situational awareness. While failed critical communications were not the root cause of the Astroworld deaths and injuries, initial press reports point to limited communications capabilities that hampered crowd control and delayed medical response. Interoperability considerations or joint command-post staffing are essential elements of a responsible event operations plan. Likewise, event managers and public-safety officials must have the ability to communicate with each other. A crippled private critical-communications system supporting a mega-event can destroy situational awareness and eliminate opportunities to reduce loss of life. Just as public-safety agencies must have robust critical communications systems to coordinate police and fire teams, the event operation requires a properly designed system. The loss of life at the Astroworld music festival is just the latest in a string of mega-event calamities that remind us of the need to be vigilant. And in 2017, Las Vegas faced the Route 91 Harvest country music festival sniper attack in Las Vegas, and Manchester suffered a suicide bomber’s carnage following the Ariana Grande Manchester Arena concert.
In 2015 coordinated terror attacks in Paris struck a packed rock concert and an international football match in the Paris Stade de France. Mega-event catastrophes have not been strangers to headlines in recent years. Unfortunately, some mega-events cut corners when it comes to the private critical-communications infrastructure serving the staff responsible for the safety and welfare of attendees. This reality means those event organizers and the local authorities must take responsibility to ensure that there is a robust privately-operated communications system linking event leadership, security staff, medical staff, and any other resource needed to handle the crowd in a crisis.
But tragedy is also an ever-present possibility. Large-scale mega-events-for example, football games, music festivals, and concerts-are not unusual, and many take place safely. The catastrophic loss of life in November at the Astroworld music festival in Houston is a potent reminder of the special critical-communications needs that should be considered at large venues hosting tens of thousands of participants.