The festival and concert circuit has been taking quite a hit in the last year. From cancelled multiple-day extravaganzas due to weather, to deaths at shows, to closings of venues all around the world, it’s been quite a wild ride. Because hearts are breaking everywhere due to closings and cancellations, many promoters, venues, and festivals are taking the necessary steps to guarantee the safety of the crowds, and solidify the stability of future performances.
Leave it to Canada to make sure all safety precautions and steps are exercised to the fullest extent possible. Toronto’s city councilors have been making some serious moves to ensure that all future festivals undergo rigorous preparation to have measures if, and when, an emergency situation arises. Last year a patron’s drug-related death at Toronto’s Rebel Nightclub shook up the city, and lawmakers immediately sprung into action.
After speaking with Metro Toronto, Toronto’s councillor Paula Fletcher offered her comments.
“It’s such a tragic event,” she said. “One death is too many.”
“It’s not ‘reasonable’ to shut down such festivals,” she said. But, “there should be very strong protocols in dealing with any emergency situations.”
Fletcher is working diligently with the city to make sure all necessary measures are going to be implemented from here on out. She thinks having private EMT’s on site isn’t enough, because by the time the city EMT is alerted and the patron is taken to the hospital, too much time has passed. This can be extremely detrimental for overdose situations.
Hopefully, this will be a lesson to the industry around the world. We could all use tighter safety rules. Nobody wants venues and festivals to keep shutting down, but more importantly, we certainly don’t want any more deaths.
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