Wind Gust Uplifts Festival Tent - Six Injured, 1 Broken Leg

What do they tell you?  "Break a leg!"  Not really a good plan for most of us.  The summer music festival season is in full swing and the weather in Tornado Alley can bring-in fairly large storms on short notice.  Tuesday, July 6th had crews setting-up for a Yes and Peter Frampton concert at the Lucky Star Casino in Concho, Oklahoma (about 20 miles west of Oklahoma City) when the skys opened-up and poured down rain with a strong downdraft.

Witnesses say the wind came in under the sides of the tent and pressurized it to lift it up and tear-out the anchor lines.  The wind toppled the sound towers and the overstage truss system as well.

Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman newspaper

Fortunately, the incident occured before there were any audience members present.  The show was cancelled and will be reschedule.

TV Interview with injured crew member:
http://feeds.newsok.tv/services/player/bcpid66319854001?bctid=110205425001

NewsOK web site article: http://www.newsok.com/local-production-crew-talk-about-tent-collapse-at-lucky-star-on-tuesday/article/3474327

Arial footage showing tent site and mangled stage gear:
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7QMRTpv6V8

A walking tour of the stage and mix tower after the event:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjRq0jYM6Ok

This video reveals alot about the original set-up.  It shows that the truss bases were not anchored and did not have any ballast weights.  The rig was set-up as if it was an indoor show with no regard to the wind that could blow through and topple the gear if the tent was breached.

Anchor your Rigs!  Watch the weather!  Don't wait for it to hit before you react!

Just how do you get out of here?

OSHA has some handy items on their web site, and one of them is the eTools.  This page discusses Evacuation Plans and Procedures:  www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/evacuation/index.html.  Within it you will find a section about Exit Routes:  www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/evacuation/egress_construction.html.

Doors - Not just for Jim Morrison

Did you know that Fire Doors must be inspected annually? Yup, just like a Fire Curtain. Ref: 2010 NFPA 80, chapter 5.2.1. Most doors in an institutional building are Fire Doors, and an easy way to verify if a door is a Fire Door it is to look at the edge of the door leaf that is attached to the hinges.

If it is a Fire Door then you will see a small metal placard that says: FIRE DOOR and a bunch of other information about the door.  Look closely if you don't see it at first -- it may have been painted-over -- which is also a fire code violation. Ref: 2010 NFPA 80, chapter 4.2.2.

Inspections of Fire Doors are to check that the door is:

• There (yes, I find them missing sometimes).
• In proper operating condition (windows not broken, operating hardware all functioning).
• The latches work (and aren't covered with gaffer's tape) - this is so the door can stay closed against the atmospheric forces of a fire.
• The crash-bar (panic hardware) works and allows the door to open (no extra dead-bolts, pad-locks, or chains).
• To make sure the door is not blocked on either side in a manner that would prevent it from being opened (things like pianos, stacks of chairs or desks, book cases, filing cabinets, cars, trucks, orchestra shells, etc.).
• To make sure that the door is not propped open in a manner that would prevent it from being closed automatically (this means NO stage weights, NO chairs, NO desks, NO microphone stands, NO speakers, NO road cases, NO scenery, NO flag pole bases, NO . . . well, you should get the point).
• To see if the automatic door closer hardware actually automatically closes the door (this is how you keep the smoke-in, air out, and keep the fire from spreading).  Disconnected, clamped, maladjusted, or broken closers must be repaired or replaced.
• To  make sure that 'extra things' haven't been added to the door like kick-down door props (no, you cannot add these to Fire Doors!) or bailing wire to tie the door open.
• And to check that the magnetic door release latch, if any, is properly working in conjunction with the Fire Alarm System (yes, this is the only legal way to prop a door open).

The Stage Manager's Ready List

I recently attended a theatre festival that had many great portfolio and model set presentations by Directors, Stage Manager's, Sound Designers, Lighting Designers, Set Builders, and many other talented individuals.  It's great to see such a high level of creativity by those coming into the business!

Of particular interest were the presentations by the Stage Managers.  Each had presentations of check-lists, pre-show make-ready items, post-show to-do lists, and every other kind of list imaginable, except one: Emergency Procedures.  So the next time you're "making a list and checking it twice," take a moment and think about what you might / should do in the cases of:

• Extreme weather conditions (flood, tornado, hurricane)
• Injuries (both to crew and performers -- and to audience members)
• Security (campus lock-down or evacuation)
• Building Emergency (fires, earthquakes, broken water pipes, roof collapse, power outage)
• Equipment failure (fire curtain comes-in accidentally, or maybe won't go-out, tripped sprinkler head - do you know where the shut-off valve is located?)

If you don't have a plan, then it is quite typical that you may end-up with total chaos on your hands.  How you handle an emergency can greatly influence the likelihood of injuries being sustained by the building occupants as they try to deal with the situation.

Have a plan (actually, several plans).  Post them.  Practice them.

Good places to hang-out:
Control Booth:  www.controlbooth.com
Stage Manager's Association www.stagemanagers.org
Production Manager's Forum www.foghouse.com/PMForum/index.html

KCACTF Region 6 - Safety Workshops

The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival will be holding an event in Amarillo, Texas (home of the Big Texan Steak House) at the Globe News Performing Arts Center on February 23 thru 27.  Info at: http://www.kcactf6.org/

I'll be presenting two Theatre Safety Workshops:

• Friday at 2:00 PM we'll talk about the House Manger's role in Theatre Safety
• Saturday at 1:30 PM we'll talk about the Stage Manger's role in Theatre Safety

Play Safe!

National Fire Prevention Week: October 5-9, 2009

In honor of National Fire Prevention Week I thought it would be good to take a look back at one of the worst Theatre Fires that ever struck this industry. The Iroquois Theatre Fire in Chicago was integral in forcing the development of improved Fire Safety Codes and Building Codes. Although the facility was largely constructed from fire retardant materials, the fire started with scenery that was not fire-proof, the fire and smoke containment system failed, and many of the emergency egress routes were blocked.  In just a few moments, hundreds of people were killed.  A true tragedy in every sense of the word.

For those that are inclined to learn from the past, and sadly, realize that many theatres today suffer from EXACTLY THE SAME CONDITIONS, please read through some of the material at the following links:

• www.inficad.com/~ksup/iroquois.html
• http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9D02E5D71130E233A25750C0A9679C946597D6CF
• www.nfpa.org/assets/files/PDF/iroquois.pdf
• www.wayneturney.20m.com/iroquoisfire.htm

Does your Fire Curtain work properly?  Does it meet all the current codes?  When was it last inspected?  When was it last tested?  Where are your records?  Where are your spare parts?  Where is the wiring diagram for the motorized hoist (if it has one)?  If you don't know the answer to any of these questions, find out!

If you need help getting this system properly designed and operating, please contact me.  Assessment of these critical Life Safety Systems is important to your staff, patrons, and performers alike.

You can't do that!

Aisles and corridors along the exit route must be kept clear of obstructions (this means tables, chairs, junk, more junk, and anything else that would or could impede the flow of people out of the building in the event of an emergency).

Theatre Safety - Where to start with the students?

"In the dark the innocent can't see." - Melissa Etheridge. Theatre Safety for the very young starts with hazard recognition. The younger the student, the less aware they are of potential dangers around them. One of the first dangers a child learns is thermal. Start there with stage lights.

You can expand your Fire & Emergency Training to have fire exit drills in the middle of show rehearsals. Start out easy and get them to understand that getting out of the building is a priority, then later you can 'complicate' their decision making by making them find and take a different route by declaring the 'obvious' or 'regular' route as "not available." People tend to exit buildings the same way they came in. You have to challenge them to find and know alternate routes should their typical or normal one be blocked.

Respect for property and others is also an important safety item. Students that 'tear things up' and harass others can be a danger to themselves and others. They are frequently the ones that don't listen to instructions, distract others so they can't listen, and go climbing or pulling on things that may fall down. These students go on to disrespect property and can damage important safety systems.


Don't just say "NO!" Explaining to the students why and how signs, ladder guards, PPE, and other safety equipment is there to protect them helps them understand why damaging that equipment may injure themselves or others. Actions have consequences. So do inactions.

Curiosity killed the cat. Although most elementary schools don't have counterweight rigging systems, it is still a good idea to familiarize the students with what they are and how they work. They have to know what the equipment is and see the potential danger so if they are visiting another venue that has that type of equipment, they don't reach-over and release a rope lock 'just to see what it does.'

From there you can start working on tool safety. Most kids never get any real instruction on basic tools like hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, and wrenches. If they can use it, they can misuse it. First-up is keeping the work space clear of nails, tacks, screws, splinters, and trip hazards. From there, go through basic tools like hammers (here is a good chance to show them why they should always be wearing safety glasses around anyone stapling or nailing. Show them how far a nail or staple can go when it ricochets - that's always an eye opener (not to be puny). Kids like "gross" - get a cow eye from the biology teacher and poke a nail through it - eewe!

Painting can also be hazardous. Help the students understand the difference between oil-based paints, latex-based paints, and water based stage paint (Green-ness, chemical hazards, clean-up hassles, skin damage, fire retardancy, etc.). Get them to wear gloves to protect their hands, safety glasses to keep the paint splatter out of their eyes, aprons to protect their clothes, knee pads if they are working on the floor (to protect them from jamming-up their knee-caps with a nail or screw someone left behind).

1000 ways to die. For each tool there is a correct way to use it, and a thousand ways to misuse it. Tunnel vision. Show them what can happen when you don't see past your work-surface (what is behind the board, under the flat, around the corner) or surroundings.

As you approach each task of building a set, or moving it, or striking it; challenge them to think about safety. Is there a safer way to do this? More people, better tools, different PPE...

And of course, keep a record of each student's training and skills. If they injure themselves or others later, it can help to know what they were permited to do verses what they took upon themselves to do.