Patron Management Institute
Safety Concerns Linger for Women’s Tennis After Attack
The New York Times By BEN ROTHENBERG, 6/30/15 Jesper Andreassen held up a plate of 10 jalapeños for the camera, then stuffed them into his mouth, one by one, proudly tossing each stem over his shoulder as he finished. He paused several times to curse, laugh, cough or shout, sounds that devolved into a series of pained growls as he neared the end. Once the last pepper had been consumed, Andreassen, a middle-aged Dane, thanked the viewer for watching. The clip, which Andreassen posted to Facebook in August, had one person as its target audience: Simona Halep, a Romanian tennis player who has been given the nickname Halepeño. For months, Andreassen had tried to prove his devotion to Halep online, addressing her in a barrage of flattering posts on Twitter. But in April, after seeing a rumor that Halep was planning to marry, Andreassen changed his tone. He became threatening and demeaning, telling Halep that she would die or never walk again for mistreating him. Halep, who is ranked No. 3 in the world, was playing at a tournament in Stuttgart, Germany, when the threats surfaced, and security officials there were immediately briefed. Twenty-two years after Monica Seles, the top-ranked Keep Reading
Manfred: MLB to re-evaluate fan safety after Fenway accident
Associated Press By MIKE FITZPATRICK June 8, 2015 SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) — Major League Baseball plans to re-evaluate fan safety at stadiums following the serious injury to a woman at Fenway Park last week. Speaking before the amateur draft at MLB Network studios Monday night, Commissioner Rob Manfred said the sport must “react strongly” to Friday night’s accident in Boston. Tonya Carpenter, 44, suffered what police initially said were life-threatening injuries when she was hit in the head by a broken bat during a game between the Red Sox and Oakland Athletics. Her family issued a statement Monday saying Carpenter is responsive, and her condition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has been upgraded from serious to fair. “When you have an issue like this, an incident like this, you have to go back and re-evaluate where you are on all of your safety issues and trust me, we will do that. Just like we are on a variety of issues right now at the beginning of my tenure,” Manfred said. Carpenter was sitting in one of the first few rows between home plate and the third base dugout, an area where fans are not protected by netting, when she Keep Reading
Player Death May Lead To Enclosed Dugout Mandate
High school baseball fields in Georgia would need completely enclosed dugouts under a law proposed by a state lawmaker. The bill is a response to the death of 14-year-old Colton Shaw who was struck by an errant throw between innings of a game in March. According to an article in The Tifton Gazette, some schools, including Valdosta High School where Colton played, added screens in front of their dugouts following his death. However, that dugout configuration would not comply with the proposed law since it’s open on the top. Colquitt County High School, where the death occurred, added a screen in front of its dugout, but left an open area where players can enter and exit. The new law would require dugouts be “fenced in overhead and on all sides” while allowing a door that must stay shut when not being used. Valdosta and Colquitt County made their changes with donated money, but there are concerns that other schools could have difficulty finding funding should the law be passed. The article estimates that adding a barrier to an existing dugout would cost $1,000 while building a new fenced-in dugout could cost about $4,000. “We find the money for everything else,” Keep Reading
Two Webinars Offer Safety and Security Best Practices
Two Webinars Offer Safety and Security Best Practices May 19, 2015 by Jason Hensel, IAVM More than 600 people participated in two webinars last week that addressed adverse situations at venues. In the “Public Demonstrations and Civil Unrest Affecting Public Assembly Facilities” webinar, speakers offered recent examples of venue disturbances and how managers and staff prepared for and responded to the situations. For instance, Orlando Venues Executive Director Allen Johnson, CFE, talked about a die-in protest at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, and the how open communication throughout the day mitigated any negative outcomes. (Read more about the protest and how the venue handled it in “Safety and Security During a Protest Rally.”) Adina Erwin, vice president and general manager of the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, also talked about a protest in her venue in December 2014. Some of her best practices recommendations include maintaining good communications with public safety agencies, monitoring websites and social media activity of protest groups, and identifying an alternate manager-on-duty. Other speakers included Leslee Stewart, general manager and CEO of the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, California; Robert Noonan, security director for the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority (MCCA) in Boston; Matthew O’Loughlin, public safety Keep Reading
High school risk management training
First High School Risk Management Course Focuses on Athletic Events, After-School Activities Main Content Article | Mon, 05/18/2015 – 11:11am | By Alison Crumpton The National Center for Spectator Sports Safety & Security (NCS4) at The University of Southern Mississippi held its first-ever Risk Management for Interscholastic Athletics and After-School Activities course on May 11 in Dover, Delaware. The course focuses on developing prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery techniques at interscholastic athletic events, and for after-school activities. Hosted by the Delaware Comprehensive School Safety Program and sponsored by TRAMEDIC™, more than 30 participants were in attendance including school administrators, resource officers, athletic directors, and state government agencies. Participants learned and discussed concepts relative to vulnerability and risk assessment, planning and preparedness, hazard mitigation, crisis communication, sustaining efficient safety and security programs and organizational teamwork. Course participant Sand Hoffman, Risk Manager at Delaware State University, noted: “Working through the scenarios presented at the course uncovered gaps in both planning and training. The diverse group in attendance offered solutions not thought of individually.” Demetrius Stevenson, School Resource Officer at Dover High School also found the course to be beneficial. “The quality of the course is high and also effective,” said Stevenson. “It’s Keep Reading
Bell Centre staff won’t be punished after Senators fans harassed at Habs game
Bell Centre staff won’t be punished after Senators fans harassed at Habs game Owners of NHL’s Canadiens, Senators met with Katie and Annie Kerrick to apologize on behalf of fans Apr 20, 2015 1:31 PM ET Kate McKenna, CBC News There will be “no repercussions” for the security attendants at the Bell Centre who did nothing when two Ottawa sisters asked them to intervene during an NHL playoff game between the Senators and the host Montreal Canadiens. Katie Kerrick,19, and her sister, Annie, 23, were hit with wound-up towels cursed at, and called derogatory names after wearing Senators jerseys to the second game of the Stanley Cup playoff series on Friday. Kerrick said that when she asked an attendant for help, the attendant said, “‘What do you want me to do? Give them a mean look?’” A Bell Centre spokesman, Donald Beauchamp, said because Katie Kerrick didn’t file a formal complaint with the centre, no one will be held accountable for the incident. Instead, security will “learn” from what happened. “There’s no repercussions other than the people are made more aware of the situation, and they’re more vigilant,” he said. He confirmed there’s increased security during the playoffs, particularly if Keep Reading
9 Ways a Music Festival Can Kill You
Cosmopolitan By Elizabeth Narins, April 8, 2014. 1. You could overheat. Basking in the sun while festival-ing could have scary consequences: Christopher Yoder, 24, died of hyperthermia (overheating) at the 2011 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. To save yourself: Buy the $5 water bottle — or two, or three. As overpriced as beverages can be at concert venues, they help you stay hydrated. Other smart strategies: Wear light-colored, loose clothing, and park in the shade when possible — especially during the afternoon when temperatures peak, suggests Cody Lundin, founder and lead instructor of Aboriginal Living Skills School in Prescott, Arizona. 2. You could suffer drug overdose, drug-induced seizure, or another medical emergency. Olivia Rotondo, 20, died from a drug-induced seizure at Electric Zoo in 2013; Ellie Rowe, 18, died from central nervous system depression from ketamine powder and alcohol toxicity at BoomTown Fair in 2013; and Sasha Rodriguez, 15, died from hyponatremia (drinking too much water) after taking ecstasy. To save yourself: In the case of a medical emergency, notify an authority as quickly as you can. And make sure your friends know the drill in case you’re not able to ask for help yourself: They should notify an authority Keep Reading
Patron abuse in Canadian youth hockey
Rink rage’ witnessed by most Canadians who have attended youth hockey games: poll Tristin Hopper | March 5, 2015 National Post A majority of Canadians who have attended youth hockey games report having witnessed adult spectators hurling curse words and abuse at referees and players, according to a new poll by Angus Reid Institute. “We hear the horror stories, but as far as we knew nobody had yet gone out to measure the prevalence of this,” said Shachi Kurl, senior vice-president of Angus Reid. The survey targeted 686 adults who had attended a youth hockey game within the past year. Of those, 59% reported witnessing “inappropriate language and/or berating” directed against a referee, and 49% saw the behaviour directed at “the kids playing hockey.” “And they think it’s serious; they think it’s hurting the game,” Ms. Kurl said. Among survey respondents, 42% called rink abuse a “very serious issue that is hurting the game,” while another 45% called it a “very serious issue, but more or less under control.” While aggressive spectators have long been a well-known phenomenon at Canadian youth hockey games, efforts to combat “rink rage” have increasingly been pushed into the spotlight. In 2010, Calgary minor hockey Keep Reading
Kansas State court storm prompts safety questions
Nicole Auerbach and Eric Prisbell, USA TODAY Sports February 24, 2015 College basketball’s court-storming days could be numbered. Though policies related to fans storming the court are determined on an individual school and/or conference level, there seems to be momentum building to consider changes — whatever they may be — in the aftermath of an ugly scene following the Kansas-Kansas State game Monday night in Manhattan, Kan. There, the frenzied Wildcat fan base flooded the court before Kansas coach Bill Self and his players could exit safely. Self was smushed between the mob and the scorer’s table. Multiple Kansas players were taunted by Kansas State fans, and Jayhawks forward Jamari Traylor was hipchecked by a Kansas State fan who appeared to go after him on purpose. “It would be wonderful if we could snap our fingers and say everybody stay off the court, no court storming,” said Kansas State athletic director John Currie, who has apologized profusely for not protecting the Kansas coaches and players better. “We didn’t do a good enough job and are fortunate nobody was hurt.” The Southeastern Conference bans court-storming and imposes escalating fines if the rule is broken. Currie, who came to Kansas State from Keep Reading
Officials: 25 people killed in Egyptian soccer match riot
Associated Press By MERRIT KENNEDY, 2/8/15 Gil Avatar Gil ✉ Mail ⚙ Help My Teams Patriots Giants Celtics Red Sox Islanders Fantasy Teams › Edit Sports Home Fantasy NFL MLB NBA NHL NCAAF NCAAB Golf NASCAR MMA Soccer All Sports Rivals Shop Recommended Games [TX Poker] [Toy Defense 2] [Astroflux] More games » Remembering Dean Smith: Icon’s NBA legacy goes beyond mentoring Michael Jordan Officials: 25 people killed in Egyptian soccer match riot Associated Press By MERRIT KENNEDY 58 minutes ago A pickup truck bursts into flames as a riot breaks out outside of a soccer match between Egyptian Premier League clubs Zamalek and ENPPI at Air Defense Stadium in a suburb east of Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2015. The riot broke out Sunday night outside of the major soccer game, with a stampede and fighting between police and fans killing at least 22 people, authorities said. (AP Photo/Ahmed Abd El-Gwad, El Shorouk newspaper) EGYPT OUT . View gallery . . . CAIRO (AP) — A riot broke out Sunday night outside of a major soccer game in Egypt, with a stampede and fighting between police and fans killing at least 25 people, authorities said. Keep Reading