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Safe & Sound
 The
fingerpointing that has ensued following indictments in the Rhode Island club
fire raises some critical concerns for public venues and their security and
safety programs.
In December, owners of The Station, a West Warwick, R.I., club, and the tour
manager for the band Great White were indicted for the fire that took 100 lives,
including the band’s guitarist Ty Longley, in February 2003. Each was charged
with 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the flammable soundproofing
in the club as well as 100 more counts of involuntary manslaughter due to gross
criminal negligence. All three men pled innocent and were released after posting
bail. The next hearing is set for Feb. 9.
The fire began just after Great White started playing, when the tour manager
set off the band’s pyrotechnic effects and the club’s soundproofing quickly
went up in flames.
 While maintaining
they did nothing wrong, the defendants pointed at each other for what happened,
according to news reports. The club owners said that Great White and its tour
manager didn’t have the right permits for the pyrotechnics display, while the
tour manager faulted the club owners for unsafe conditions at The Station. The
club owners also say blame should be spread to Great White frontman Jack Russell
and to the town’s inspectors who certified the venue as being safe just two
months earlier and who never noticed the foam on the walls.
The situation illustrates the potential showdown between event planners and
venues over liability for the safety and security of patrons — an issue discussed
in this month’s expert article by Steven Hacker, president of the International
Association for Exhibition Management (see page 32).
Along with your feedback, it also begs a broadened focus for Public Venue
Security in 2004 to include safety aspects of a total security program.
In this issue, for example, we are featuring fire safety — not only prevention
and detection but also response — on page 38. A roundup of products that can
assist your venue in building or supplementing your fire safety program follows.
In addition, professor Gil Fried in his column, Ask the Expert on page 41 introduces
you to the National Fire Protection Association and its recommendations for
facility fire safety, which have been adopted in 33 states as a part of building
or fire codes. NFPA’s Life Safety Code has received significant endorsement
throughout the fire and building industries and, as such, can be interpreted
by the judicial system as the industry standard.
Finally, we are kicking off our first Best Practices column on page 42 with
a primer by Dr. Ricardo Martinez on developing an emergency medical response
to your security program.
As a new publication, Public Venue Security has enjoyed a warm reception
from readers, practitioners and vendors. We hope that you will find our expanded
coverage helpful to your evolving security and safety planning. Similarly, we
are proud to present our inaugural Buyer’s Guide & Directory. Within its
pages (8-28) and aremore than 300 resources. Keep this reference handy throughout
the year and, when you call, tell them you found them in Public Venue Security.
Happy New Year!
Khali Henderson
Group Editor
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