Safeguarding Today’s U.S Stadiums:
Is the Threat of Terrorism Real?
Stadium Security: Could The Unthinkable Occur? Here?
With the new year upon us, the threat of Terrorism is alive and real. The tragedies which unfolded in Berlin is a constant, yet painful reminder that security leaders must view training initiatives through a proactive lens.
The emergence of lone wolf, domestic and international threats present numerous challenges for today’s U.S. stadium security directors, those entrusted with duty of care, to properly safeguard confined spaces within the vertical.
Furthermore, most experts tend to agree that a lorry crashing through a crowded marketplace can potentially cause mass collateral damage. The question then begs, could a Berlin like attack occur outside a U.S. stadium, venue or arena? Let’s further explore the possibilities. With the ongoing instability in the Middle East, terrorist organizations, through the utilization of social media platforms, have been able to bolster their cause.
As tragedies continue to unfold, it would appear, a full court press-so to speak, has been used by anarchist groups to radicalize the disenfranchised to further spread their message of fear, hate and human carnage.
As we know, today’s sports and entertainment industry is a multi-billion dollar juggernaut. With the Super Bowl slated for Houston, Texas, this February-2017, pre event planning for such a colossal event has been years in the making.
The ability to have established communication networks between command center personnel, first responders, i.e. law
enforcement, fire dept, safety, ems and the intelligence community is paramount for safeguarding this type of mega event. Stadium security and guest services staff-stadium gatekeepers, along with contracted law enforcement, having excellent verbal communication skills while forming a hybrid multi-pronged, screening contingent, further helps bolster security initiatives upon ingress.
Best Practices
In addition, the existence of the lone wolf, quite unpredictable, is a growing concern for the intelligence community. Stadium security leaders should avail themselves of not only sharing best practices/lessons learned with fellow industry peers but should also align themselves with their local JTTF-Joint Terrorism Task Force, for the most up to date, accurate, real time intelligence sharing information. The significance of public/private partnerships cannot be underscored in these pursuits.
Stadium security leaders should avail themselves
of sharing best practices/lessons learned
with fellow industry peers