CBRN and Hazmat Incidents at Major Public Events: Planning and Response

SCENARIO A

The Venue Search

BACKGROUND

As discussed in Chapter 7, a fundamental component of good major-event security is the venue search. Security personnel need to examine every inch of a venue to see if hazards are present. This scenario not only applies to CBRN/HAZMAT scenarios but to conventional scenarios as well. Indeed, antiterrorist search operations are used far more often to search for explosive devices or firearms than they are for CBRN devices and materials.

The time-tested security countermeasure for hidden materials and devices is the search operation. In a search operation (called a “sweep” in some settings) trained security personnel, often search technicians or EOD technicians, with or without the assistance of dog teams or technical detection means, physically search the entire venue involved. Based on the size of venues and time available, search operations can become very large undertakings. Managing a large search is not easy. How to do a search properly is enough of a subject for another book, but I can recommend the training provided by the U.K. Police National Search Centre as an excellent resource for such operations. Rather than trying to explain how to do a good security search, the point in this scenario is to incorporate CBRN/HAZMAT concerns into a search.

THE SCENARIO

A World Financial Summit is being held on 1 July 20XX in your city. This event will be attended by central bank chiefs and finance ministers from a number of major countries. Several ...