Tracer observation of egress and way‐home crowd behavior at stadiums: From the perspective of crowd control in emergency evacuations

Abstract

AbstractThis paper discusses crowd control at stadiums in emergency evacuation situations such as fire, bomb threat, and terror incidents. As a comparative reference for this study, the author observed egress/way‐home crowd behavior at eight stadiums by walking with the crowd as a tracer. At some stadiums, the crowd was controlled by closing certain exits, installing temporary fences, and providing staff guidance to relieve congestion and counterflow outside the stadiums. At other stadiums, there was no accumulation, and spectators egressed freely. In case of a fire, flames and smoke can be controlled by fire extinguishment, smoke control, etc.; therefore, the need for urgent evacuation can be relieved to some extent. However, urgent evacuation is needed in emergencies such as a fire in a closed‐roof stadium or indoor premises, or a bomb threat. In such situations, sufficient space for accumulation outside the stadium is required. Therefore, stadiums that let spectators returning home walk freely after normal events are desirable because urgent evacuation can be completed in the same manner. The above aspects should be considered in the whole process of selecting stadium sites, planning circulation in stadiums, and deploying guiding staff.