HARRIS COUNTY, TX. (THECOUNT) — The security and emergency response plan document prepared by organizers ahead of the Astroworld festival in Houston layed out details for responding to tornadoes, extreme heat, bomb threats, earthquakes and active shooters. The issue of a possible crowd surge was not mentioned.
The plan instructs security personnel to be aware of the possibility of a mob when attempting to detain an unruly or out of control concert-goer. “If detaining the perpetrator, watch for angry groups, mobs forming.” But, again, provides no best practices on what to do once that happens.
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In the instance of a fatality, staff were told to “never use the term ‘dead’ or ‘deceased’ over the radio.” Instead, they were told to notify Event Control using the code “smurf.”
The 56-page document never once mentions how to handle a dangerous crowd surge, like what took place during headliner Travis Scott’s concert over the weekend — and like the last time the rapper performed at the festival in 2019, reports nprillinois.
Dozens of lawsuits have been filed since a suspected crowd surge took the life of at least 8 festival-goers injuring scores more during a Travis Scott performance last weekend.
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Geo quick facts: Harris County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas, located in the southeastern part of the state near Galveston Bay. As of the 2010 census, the population was 4,092,459, making it the most populous county in Texas and the third most populous county in the United States – Wikipedia.