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Ask any American what their favorite pastime is, and you’ll likely hear “going to a game.” Baseball, football, soccer, hockey—we love to support our home team. We go to the stadium, family in tow, eat hot dogs and cotton candy, wave team banners, and bond with our fellow fans. We don’t think about how we would get out of the stadium quickly in case of an emergency.
As stakeholders in the venue management arena, we understand the importance of having a solid evacuation plan for any type of emergency—whether it’s an act of nature or a man-made situation.
The Uriah Group brings venue management stakeholders—stadium managers, state and local government, the federal government, and hospitals together to develop an integrated evacuation plan. By developing a solid plan, venue managers are better able to manage and respond to an incident.
Evacuating a venue to remove visitors from threat while keeping them calm requires careful planning and understanding of the roles and responsibilities of venue personnel, contractors, and local response agencies. The Uriah Group provides a three-stage approach to develop a solid plan:
Stage I Assessment
We determine key assets in relation to threats and vulnerabilities. This includes an impact analysis and audit of any existing plans.
Stage II Planning
We develop a plan based on federal, state, and corporate business best practices set forth in the National Response Plan and any relevant evacuation and recovery plans.
Stage III Engagement—Evaluation and Training
Stage III comprises two parts. First, we conduct a tabletop exercise that includes key venue personnel and key supporting agencies who would respond to an event to evaluate current procedures. We then stage an evacuation exercise with approximately 2,000 volunteer visitors. We use the Evacuation Response Plan developed in stage II as the foundation of the exercise, and all key support agencies participate.
Venue security is a complex arena. The Uriah Group brings our unparalleled project and risk management expertise to this arena to help venue managers provide a safe environment for their visitors to enjoy the greatest American pastimes.
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