Chapter 25 - Crowd Management and Special Event Planning

Abstract

Whenever people gather together in large numbers such as at athletic events, parades, strikes, peaceful demonstrations, protest rallies, and so on, there exists a potential for mass discord. When disturbances do occur, it becomes the responsibility of the police, and in some instances, the responsibility of security forces, to restore order. Once a crowd has gotten out of control, whether through inadequate supervision or despite the best efforts by security personnel to prevent its deterioration, the task of restoring any semblance of order, protecting life and property, and the eventual dispersal of the crowd or mob is a tremendous one. It is important, therefore, that police and security forces be able to quickly determine if a gathering will become uncontrollable and take immediate steps to prevent disorder. The only way this can be successfully accomplished is for all crowd-management personnel to have a good understanding of the types of crowd formations they are likely to encounter. Also, these personnel should note the different responsibilities of security officers, police, and riot-control forces.