- Human tragedy is always bound to evoke strong emotions since the dreadful sight of innocent lives losing lives for want of adequate safety and security measures could have prevented such an occurrence from happening in the first place. It is increasingly evident that the organizers of any event expected to be adorned with a big crowd often fail to anticipate the possible failures vis-à-vis logistical arrangements provisioning safety measures leading to monumental disasters. At the best of times, the nitty-gritty of ensuring fool-proof security measures by anticipating surges in the crowd often gets less attention leading to avoidable tragic situations. One such avoidable tragedy unfolded recently in Chennai during the Indian Air Force’s airshow.
PC: Deccan Herald
- Prima facie, the organizers – in this case, the DMK government in Tamil Nadu – failed to anticipate and cover all possible ways that could have led to tragedy from unfolding. The resultant outcome is that 5 people died and several were injured thanks to basic safety rules not being adhered to. When events are pushed as aggressively as IAF’s Chennai airshow was, surely the Tamil Nadu administration, and especially the police, had estimates of crowds expected? It makes us feel helpless when the tragic incident culminated with the death of five spectators at the event’s close, waiting to exit the venue in unbearable heat. Just days ago, the State Planning Commission released its report on TN’s heat mitigation plans. Did someone mention, irony? Indeed.
- Yes, the authorities are at it again citing mundane excuses rather than admitting they spectacularly failed in ensuring fool-proof security measures. Authorities cite two factors for the deaths: excessive heat/dehydration and crowds that moved all at once. This is deflecting blame on people themselves and the weather. In truth, both are factors organizers are expected to prioritize when planning events. That India is facing unrelenting high temperatures, and high humidity is hardly new. Nor were the crowds unexpected, given that the administration’s goal was always to enter the Limca Book of Records. The latter aim is an absurdity in itself – attempts at a record for an airshow are expected to be the numbers and types of aircraft participating, not the people.
PC: Money Control
- Whether the crowd was 15L or 7L strong is irrelevant. The point to ponder over here is why the exits for crowds were poorly planned and manned. If anything, there are reports of police closing a gate that thwarted the flow of people at one point. Regulating the flow of a moving crowd is key to crowd control, a constant intonation on loudspeakers to simply maintain the pace is a standard protocol. The stampede in a Hathras event earlier this year also happened as people were exiting the venue. It is entrances and exits that are the most high-risk factors contributing to a stampede. Pre-event risk analysis failed. The bigger question is did the event follow the city’s heat plans that the TN govt boasts about? Should such a spectacle have been held in the first place? Not at all.
