5 days ago
Gurski: How safe from attack can public events really be?
Recently, the village of Russell held its semi-annual 'Meet me on Main Street' event (it alternates years with nearby Embrun). This gathering has become popular of late in small communities in eastern Ontario, where local vendors and groups set up tables and engage with their neighbours.
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This year's edition was a huge success, with hundreds of residents milling along the main drag, Concession Street. The hot, muggy weather was no deterrent, although I must confess the presence of two craft breweries helped.
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The township arranged the whole affair and announced in advance that a section of the street would be closed from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. It brought out portable washrooms, a bouncy castle for the kids and the requisite barriers to remind people that they would have to detour around the venue. What surprised me, however, was the placement of two heavy dump trucks at either end, sealing off the road. Would wooden barriers and a sign not have sufficed?
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I began to wonder whether the recent spate of incidents in which drivers have mowed down pedestrians was a factor in the decision to bring in the trucks. After all, it was only a few months ago, on April 26, that a man drove through a Vancouver Filipino cultural event, killing 11 and wounding 30. This was not deemed an act of terrorism, unlike the New Year's Eve attack in New Orléans in which an ISIL-inspired man killed 14 and injured dozens of others.
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Similarly, just the other day a man ejected from a night club for 'disruptive behaviour' careened into a crowd in Los Angeles, harming at least 30 (police report he was inebriated, and most likely angered at having been rejected).
Russell is a small town, and not the place anyone would expect to be a terrorist to target. Still, township of Prescott-Russell officials must have to take all possibilities into consideration when planning events such as 'Meet me on Main Street,' if for no other reason than liability should something untoward occur.
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All this got me thinking of public venues and safety. Just like Russell, Embrun and other eastern Ontario communities, Ottawa has its own celebrations: Canada Day, Winterlude, Pride parades, music festivals and many others. What precautions need to be taken to prevent, to the extent possible, a horrific scene in which someone decides to run over those celebrating?
