JUHÁSZ LÁSZLÓ
EVENT AND VENUE SAFETY AND SECURITY
AND EVENT SAFETY TECHNOLOGY
FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF PROPERTY
PROTECTION AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT
RENDEZVÉNYBIZTOSÍTÁS, RENDEZVÉNYEK
BIZTONSÁGTECHNIKÁJA, A VAGYONVÉDELEM ÉS
A KATASZTRÓFAVÉDELEM OLDALÁRÓL
A rendezvények biztosítása egy olyan tevékenység, melynek során kisebb-nagyobb cso-portokat vonzó események lebonyolításakor a szervezést végző intézmény felkérésére, annak megbízásából és útmutatásai szerint végeznek. Azoknak a rendezvényszervező gazdaságitársaságoknak, intézményeknek amelyek politikai, kulturális, sport, vagy más rendezvényeket, programokat szerveznek, már a a tervezés kezdetekor, gondolniuk kell az adott rendezvény biztonságára. A nézőket befogadó rendezvények függetlenül azok jelle-gétől és fajtájától nem hanyagolhatják el a kiválóan képzett szakemberek meglétét, akik rendelkeznek azon képeségekel melyek révén gondoskodni tudnak a rendezvények lebo-nyolításának zavartalanságáról, a résztvevők biztonságáról és nyugalmáról.
Providing event and venue safety and security is an activity which is carried out at the request and according to the instructions of the event operator (a person or an institution) at events attracting smaller or larger groups or crowds of people. Event and venue operators (firms or organisations) that are involved in the organisation of sports, cultural, political or other types of events have to consider the safety and security of the event at the outset. Well trained and professional personnel capable of ensuring that the event is held undisturbed and the attendees are safe and secure are indispensible at events attracting spectators or large crowds, irrespective of the purpose or type of the event.
About events in general
Providing safety and security at events and venues is one of the most important areas of the manned guarding of the assets and facilities, since
this is the service most frequently required by the client in addition to the basic service (i.e. the protection of the site, office building and other installation). This is the „show window” of the security industry because is practical realization is characterized by direct personal contact. Only highly qualified leadership and a group of regularly trained personnel who are used to working together can guarantee that an event goes smoothly and achieves its goal, or that adequate steps are taken should something unforeseen and unexpected happen. Event security forms an integral part of body-guarding, which is very often required in combination with providing event safety and security. As opposed to the frequent belief of the clients and the unfortunate practice in many places, the tasks of the security personnel involved in providing event safety and security are not to be confused with the tasks of the organizing personnel.
The organizers are basically responsible for providing the professional background stemming from the nature of the event and ensuring the necessary conditions as well as determining the programme and the protocol. They make sure that the technical equipment is in place, the participants of the event (performers, exhibitors, politicians etc.) can prepare for their tasks under the appropriate conditions and that the audience/guests take the seats designated for them. The security personnel’s tasks include planning the security of the event, arranging the escape routes and the steps to be taken in case a disaster or other unexpected event should occur and they are also responsible for determining the tasks of the organizers in such cases. In the event of disturbances the security personnel have to remove the troublemakers from the venue as inconspicuously as possible. However, the main task of event security personnel is to take measures to reduce to the minimum the chance of something unforeseen occurring and to do so already at the stage of planning and organization. To put it very simply: the security personnel are responsible for the prevention and the management of unforeseen events.
The organizer of the event has to make sure that order is maintained during the event. If damage/injury is caused by an attendee of the event, the organizer of the event and the damage doer are jointly liable for any claims for compensation. (The organizer is exempt from liability for the damage provided that he/she followed the course of action which is required in the given situation.)
The police and other property protection agencies can be involved in event security (on a contractual basis) if requested by the organizer and they can be authorized to remove troublemakers from the premises. There are events where safety and security have to be provided by the police (e.g. state events), however, in our days event safety and security is often provided by civilian companies and the police only get involved if requested by the organizer to carry out special police tasks if necessary. Holding certain event requires a special permit issued by the police department under whose jurisdiction the area where the event is to be held belongs. (e.g. marches and demonstrations). In case of other events (cultural, sports etc.) in order to prevent emergencies the administrative agencies (Fire Department, Public Health Authority) can set criteria regarding the equipment at the given venue. Depending on the type and size of the event different level rules of law prescribe obligatory actions to be taken, which range from the declaration of intention to hold an event to the actual provision of security. The tasks to be carried out while providing event safety and security vary according to the nature of the event (its type), its venue (public place or a facility with an entry system) and what can be expected with regard to the number and composition of attendees and their expressions of emotion.
The main tasks involved in event safety and
security
The main tasks are the following:
— establishment of the suitable conditions for the event in terms of manpower and equipment that suit its type and purpose;
— prevention of disturbances and detection of unauthorized persons and trouble-seekers;
— provision of personal and property protection for the attendees; — evaluation of event security.
From the above it is clear that the person in charge of event security must be are of the physical and psychological characteristics of the crowd attending the event and how they might react in case of an unexpected incident. Only after gathering all the necessary information is it possible to effectively prepare the security personnel for adequate action to
manage the crowd in case of an unforeseen event. Different courses of action have to be worked out and rehearsed by the security personnel for disasters and disturbances and the same crowd has to be managed in a different manner in case of a bomb alert or direct attack.
The execution of the task itself is continuous crowd management. A permanent process of actions and reactions (the changes in the situation depend on the behaviour of the two sides, which is greatly affected by the constant intensity of incoming stimuli), where the key to success is plannability. A disciplined, consequent, decisive but polite execution of the security tasks reduces the possibility of an emergency and may prevent a potential panic situation.
The basic conceptions of event security
The event as a gathering is as old as human society. The notion of event in a wide sense is well-known, however it is not defined statutorily. A possible definition of an event is as follows: an event is a social gathering convened for a particular purpose by an organization, association, social organization or an individual, where various people meet on an occasional, permanent or continuous basis. (e.g. government events, political events, cultural and sports events, conferences on economy, medicine or law, scientific sessions etc.) Ever since events have been organized there has been a need for event security. Event safety and security is understood as a totality of those calculated and planned situation analyses, courses of action and continuous assessments, which are meant to guarantee that the events go smoothly and the assets and the attendees are safe and secure.
The aims of event security:
— ensuring that the event proceeds undisturbed — maintaining personal and assets security
— preventing disturbances and stopping trouble-seekers
— localizing and (if necessary, in cooperation with the police) removing troublemakers
— denying unauthorized persons access to the venue — body-guarding VIPs and other attendees of the event — enforcing the rules set by the event organizer
To sum up, the aim of providing event safety and security is to ensure that the event is not disturbed or disrupted by an unexpected occurrence.
Events from the point of view of security
technology, property protection and
disaster management
Security science encompasses all areas of life and studies the basic rules of hat steps have to be taken if negative changes take place in the systems of production. The aim of security science is to analyze the functions of security systems from the very beginning and to ensure that the planning of security systems is as detailed as possible. Safety and security means freedom from danger — the state of being free from danger. It is that state of the interrelated basic interests of persons and organizations that can be interpreted as the combined effects of the intentional illegal actions that endanger their proper functioning and the defensive resources counterpoised to them. The financial resources spent on security are compensated by the damage that has not been done. Security is a state which is the result of conscious efforts and it is the indispensible means of achieving the basic goals of persons and organisations (in addition to financial costs the internal rules of organization and operation are another precondition for security). Security can be factorially determined by the ratio of risk and returns. The formula is as follows: S = DR/AR (security = value of defence resources / value of all risks) Security is that state of the human body and psyche which affects and is affected by external factors and environmental components. This state is called existing health.
Health is the perfect state of human the body and society. This does not only mean that there is no disease or any kind of weakness in the human body or man’s social environment, but it also means that:
— the human body and its parts are free from injury, toxicosis or the dangers of environmental effects;
— the psyche is not shocked in crisis or life-threatening situations; — the individual is able to continue his/her productive or any other kind
of activity.
The concept of „security as a means of preserving health” means that security as an existing state and a controlling factor of the human body
and psyche that protects them from the effects of the environment. In an optimal case these areas are built upon each other. Their proportions and relations determine the security level of a given area. Even with the most perfect property protection and most comprehensive insurance cover damage or loss that cannot be covered by insurance can happen. The so called „residual risk” has to be reckoned with as well. Security must be characterized with some kind of unit of measurement or value, and this purpose is served by the determination of the degree of security. The value of the degree of security is not an absolute but a relative value. The degree of security has to be determined as threat value on the one hand, and as risk value on the other. The threat value is an absolute numerical value, which is based on the well-known national security and health standards. The risk value is a relative value, which describes the likelihood of the occurrence of the threat. Property protection is not a value increasing but a loss decreasing activity. Property protection includes the protection of persons, organizations and their assets and the interests related to them. Everyone has the right to safeguard their property and they can also assign this right to someone else.
The areas of property protection are as follows: — disaster protection;
— fire protection;
— health and safety at work; — IT and secret protection; — guarding.
Security activity: the institutional provision of the organizational planning , organizing supervising, operating and controlling conditions which are meant to prevent the illegal activities that endanger the security of the property and other valuables of an organization, the assets used by the organization as well as the people belonging to the organization. An important part of this activity is formed by organizational efforts, which are the operative means of continuous work.
Security activities
A common characteristic of security activities is the fact that they are usually carried out as a complex defence activity. The guarding and protection service always covers a clearly specifies area and involves
unambiguously regulated activities. In order to carry it out a license issued by the police is needed.
— Site security (guarding properties and facilities), — Body-guarding;
— Cash/Valuables escort; — Event safety and security;
— Design and installation of security systems; — Remote surveillance;
— Private investigation; — Consultation.
In case of a large crowd gathering in a relatively small area, there is an increased risk of a disaster happening, so a higher emphasis has to be laid on prevention. It is obvious that when planning for crowd events and de-signing event security, catastrophe management has to be taken into consideration. The definition of a disaster: an unexpected natural or man-made catastrophe of substantial extent, hitting a plant, one or more settlements, one or more countries or a whole continent and causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life or sometimes permanent change to the natural environment, which exceed the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources and the consequences of which can only be managed with concerted local, national or international effort.
The classification of disasters according to their origin: — natural disasters
— technical/technological disasters — social disasters
When describing the various types of disasters the textbook specifically men tions catastrophes that happen at political, religious or sports events as a sub-type of social disasters. It must not be forgotten that disasters can activate each other. Disaster control involves prevention, response and recovery/reconstruction and the regulations and means related to them.
About unforeseen occurrences
In case of an unforeseen occurrence the security personnel employed by the event organizer is responsible for taking the necessary measures. They play a very important role in evacuation ensuring that evacuation routes
are left clear of any obstruction. The definition of an unforeseen occurrence: an unforeseen event from the point of view of security guarding, property protection and private investigation is an occurrence that is not part of the normal course of events and requires action to be taken by those involved in the above mentioned activities.
The two conditions have to exist at the same time. „Normal course of events” means that the regularly recurring events and the events of everyday life happen in an orderly fashion, nothing unusual and disturbing can be noticed and apart from the actions taken in connection with daily work no other action is taken by the security personnel.
„Requires action to be taken” means action taken besides action in connection with daily work. In the technical literature some authors regard two more elements, which frequently but not always exist, as part of the definition of an unforeseen occurrence.
One of these element is that unforeseen event disturbs or hinders usual daily business. This element is not a necessary condition because there are minor unforeseen events in case of which taking action is simple, takes only a very short time and does not disturb or hinder daily work. On the other hand, the fact that action has to be taken in itself manifests a disturbing and obstructive circumstance.
The other element is unexpectedness. Most of the time unforeseen events happen unexpectedly but not always. In some cases there are signs which actually indicate that an unforeseen event will occur and it is possible to prepare for preventing it. (e.g. detecting the preparations for an attack) In such cases the element of unexpectedness is absent. Based on the definition there can be many different kinds of unforeseen events and they can b e classified according to several different criteria.
The classification of unforeseen occurrences:
— unforeseen events occurring in connection with the organisation or performance of the activity
— events happening during an activity carried out for a client
— events that create an emergency or a justifiable defensive situation The causes of unforeseen occurrences: crimes and their perpetrators, the circumstances making it possible for a crime to be committed, public utility breakdowns, natural disasters, fire, accidents and other events causing loss or damage.
Summary
It would be important to set up a small group of experts to study this topic at home and internationally with the aim of improving training and putting the lessons learned into practice. There have been dramatic changes in the property protection business as a result of which it is now clear that there is no demand for any more services of this kind.
In the event safety and security market the western European trend prevails. There are significantly fewer property protection companies which meet the personnel, financial and technical requirements to carry out the special tasks involved in providing event safety and security at a high level. In case of professional events only a dozen of the huge number of services can be considered as a potential security provider.
Literature
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