A U.K. Police Officer comforts a young girl outside Manchester (U.K.) Arena after a terror attack outside the venue last night.
Amid the pink balloons and ponytails, terror landed on the touring industry yesterday. The event occurred just outside the front doorsa of Manchester (U.K.) Arena at about 10:30 p.m. local time during the opening night of Ariana Grande’s Dangerous Woman European tour.
Guy (Chip) Chipparoni, who is handling communications for SMG, which has managed the 21,000-seat Manchester Arena since it opened in 1995, said the staff has set up operations outside the venue, which is still an active crime scene. He emphasized the incident took place outside the arena, in a public space that connects the Victoria Station train station, retail and restaurants and the arena.
Following the blast and during egress from the building, the venue made public announcements asking concertgoers to be calm and patient. The venue is well and professionally staffed, he said, and John Sharkey, SMG Europe, is on the scene.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack, which killed 22 people, including children, and injured dozens more. Unlike the 2015 attack that saw 90 people lose their lives during the Eagles Of Death Metal show at the Bataclan in Paris, the Manchester tragedy took place outside the venue as fans (and parents picking them up) exited the building following the show. Given Grande’s demographic, there were a lot of young people in the audience, many of them rushing to find their parents.
As security and counter-terrorism experts have warned, and recent events around the globe have shown, the focus of the terrorists has shifted from the harder targets inside venues to the softer targets on the perimeter.
Similarly, the industry must adapt, directed by its security professionals. Prevent Advisors, a division of the Oak View Group, led by Chairman Bill Bratton, former Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Chief and New York Police Department (NTPD) Commissioner, along with CEO Chris Robinette, a former Green Beret and COO Ben Tolle, also in Special Forces, and VP of Security Mike Downing, a former LAPD deputy chief and commanding officer of the Counter-Terrorism & Criminal Intelligence Bureau, bring critical insight to an industry which, for decades, had dealt with problems mostly related to in-venue crowd management and drug and alcohol issues.
Their message has been consistent, encouraging venues to look outward beyond the venue walls when considering the security plan. The Manchester incident further reinforces the message that terrorists are “looking outside,” and are not trying to penetrate existing security measures that have traditionally been focused inside the venue walls. “Expand your perimeters,” Prevent Advisors’ Tolle noted on a call to members of OVG’s Arena Alliance consortium of venues. These softer targets that will surely harden up in the coming days include parking lots and mass transportation drop-off areas, now clearly a target for vehicle rammings of pedestrians, IEDs, and suicide bombers such as the one in Manchester.
Much of the focus should be on giving the appearance of a well-protected event and venue. In addition to ample and visible security personnel, Prevent suggests contacting local police enforcement to ask for additional manpower and decoy cars at events, and to coordinate with transportation authorities. They also suggest all personnel to be on high alert for “abnormal behavior” (dress that is not appropriate for the weather or event, or large bulky items) and to utilize dogs. Given that Internet chatter often precedes terrorist attacks (some media reported a foreboding twitter post four hours before the Manchester attack), venues and events should take measures to “geo-fence” their location to monitor social media for key terms.
Meanwhile, the magnitude of the tragedy and its implications on the industry are beginning to sink in, especially with SMG. Maureen Ginty, SMG EVP, marketing services and human resources, told Venues Today in an email, “We all feel that this was just a horrendous tragedy, and have the utmost concern for everyone who is affected by this deplorable incident.”
Doug Thornton, SMG EVP, stadiums and arenas, wrote: “We are not in a position where we can comment just now. As you know, this incident is still under investigation and all officials are still trying to gather facts.”
SMG also posted a message on their website immediately after the incident: “On Monday evening at approximately 10:30 p.m., an incident occurred in a public space outside of Manchester Arena (UK) as attendees were exiting the Ariana Grande concert. Arena management continues to assist law enforcement officials in their investigation. ….”
Because it is an ongoing investigation, SMG deferred comment until the investigation is further along.
In the short term, the industry is moving forward, if skittishly. Marc Geiger, worldwide head of music for William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, sees “increases” across the board. “Security costs, insurance [costs] and time to enter a venue will all go up immediately, everywhere,” he tells Venues Today.“Metal detectors and more will start where they don’t have them and police costs will be added. That will happen regardless, worldwide.”
Another cost surely to increase is entertainment insurance premiums related to live events. “I haven’t heard about an immediate impact on premiums but, typically, when an event like this happens, the market gets fearful and limits terrorism coverage while increasing costs,” said Paul Bassman, president/CEO of Ascend Insurance Brokerage.
Bassman said a “wide range” of options are offered when it comes to covering terrorism. Terrorism is initially excluded on most event cancelation policies, however it can be covered by endorsement, or by purchasing a separate terrorism policy. Terrorism is clearly defined in the policy as, ‘any form, fear, threat, or acts of terrorism are expressly excluded from coverage.' Options to cover acts of terrorism can range from removing the exclusion altogether to buying coverage limited to incidents that occur near the venue and close to the event date.
The impacted event “still has to meet the test of a proper cancellation, but if it does, it’s typically a pretty broad policy offered, as broad as removing the terrorism exclusion altogether, to limiting coverage for acts of terrorism based on time—the number of days before the event—and distance—within a certain number of miles from the venue,” Bassman explained.
Bassman said currently industry rates for terrorism coverage would be about .15 percent to .25 percent, or $15,000-$25,000 on a $1 million policy. He added that such coverage is becoming increasingly common for touring artists and festivals to carry.
“I can’t speak to [Grande’s tour], but if she has terrorism coverage on her touring policy, she could definitely make claims,” he said. “There were a lot of artists on tour in Europe when [the Bataclan incident] happened, and they made claims for terrorism all over Europe as travel was restricted; shows were being cancelled left and right because they weren’t protected properly. I’m sure that will happen now, because there will probably be travel restrictions and shows cancelled all over Europe.”
Take That, scheduled to play Manchester Arena May 25, 26 and 27, has been postponed. The next scheduled event, KISS, May 30 and touted as their only confirmed show in the north of the country for 2017, is still on the schedule as of Tuesday, May 23.
Ever since the shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, the mayor of that city has been particularly keen on security. That makes Allen Johnson’s job easier as director of Orlando Venues. Both he and the police chief answer to the mayor.
His first reaction to the terrorist attack at Manchester Arena is that “it happened outside the venue,” but, that said, he has been consciously pushing the “front door” of Amway Center and Camping World Stadium beyond the gate, even beyond the ballards out front.
“Our ‘front door’ is not the front door,” he said. “It’s the parking garage, it’s the people who park downtown and walk in. We’ve extended our perception of our front door to include quite a few things.”
It’s a key ingredient to customer service and the patron experience in today’s world, when there are people who care nothing for their own life or the lives of others. How do you stop that?
“We have police outside in places we normally wouldn’t for fear of interrupting patron or traffic flow,” Johnson said. “At all major events, we have SWAT units inside or near the entrance.” The SWAT teams are fully outfitted, right down to long rifles and, while there is concern such a visible presence would be a deterrent to fun-seeking sports and concert fans, it has proven to be something patrons appreciate, Johnson said. “Remember, it’s already happened here.”
When the National Basketball Association went to mandatory wanding, Orlando Venues invested in magnetometers. Generally speaking, concert promoters are fine with the extra security cost. It’s the world we live in, Johnson said.
He recalled travelling to Europe with the Orlando Magic, where he talked with one of the security guards at the O2 Arena. The guard told Johnson to remember, you ‘Yanks’ have been dealing with this since 2001, we’ve been dealing with it since the 60s.
Orlando has gone further, taking some more extreme steps about which Johnson declined to tip their hand, though he did refer to other more common steps, like bomb sniffing dogs which are becoming more common at venues. “You have to make your venue a hard target and you have to extend the front door,” he said.
Grande’s next stop is supposed to be at the O2 Arena, London, on Thursday, May 25, and Friday, May 26. Barnaby Hooper, 02 Arena, communications director, said, “Isn’t it just awful. We’re in total shock. We’re all saddened by the terrible tragedy in Manchester. Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected and their families.”
“Ariana is due to perform at The O2 on Thursday and Friday,” he said. “We’re awaiting confirmation, but it is highly likely the shows will not go ahead.”
“As soon as I have further information I will share it,” he said, adding, “Regardless of whether these shows go on, security is always tight at The 02.”
Grande was due at Sportspaleis, Antwerp, Belgium, on Sunday night, May 28. Ineke Geert at the Sportspalies said, “Our hearts are with the victims and people in Manchester. This is a terrible tragedy. It is completely up to Ariana Grande and her team to decide if they want to play the show here on Sunday night, but at the moment, it sounds like the show will be cancelled.”
“Security at Sportapleis is our number one concern,” she said. “If the show does go on, we will take every precaution we can to ensure the safety of our guests.”
Wouter Bruyns of the Antwerp police said, "We are still at threat level 3 and we are monitoring the situation closely. We are on high alert in all busy areas. This attack does not mean we will now have extra police protection for large venues as a standard. It will mean extra vigilance."
It has been reported that Grande has canceled the rest of her European tour.