“When the moon in the sky like a big pizza pie hits your eye, that’s “Green” Amore?”, with apologies to Dean Martin.
It has been over a month since Close Up’s Forever Summer party. The 5 deaths and fingerpointing that went along with it has come and gone. The first rains of the monsoon have arrived and nowhere can the real culprits be found.
It is just like the end of each summer. The blooms will finally fade and a chill wind will nip the nose and ears at dusk of each day that followed. Getting colder and colder by the next day. The parched ground will eventually be watered by the initial drizzle and then inundated by the monsoons not long after.
The youth who have danced to the thumping rhythms would have all went each other’s ways. No longer will the shouts and cheers be heard on the sun-baked grounds. There will be five of them who will not see the next summer. These names, in the full flower of youth no longer bask under the sun.
• Ariel Leal, 22
• Lance Garcia, 36
• Ken Migawa, 18
• Bianca Fontejon
• Eric Anthony Miller, 33
It was during the days of the last summer’s fling that they were taken away.
By now the headlines have faded and recriminations were quick. The tragedy was even the prologue of a press conference by the President-Elect that eventually that went awry. The blame flew thick and fast amidst the media frenzy. Aside from the “Who” and What” there was really no in-depth coverage of the “How” and especially the “Why”. The “Why” cannot be ascertained as of now. It is a confluence of social and cultural factors that led to the tragedy. It is better discussed after a certain amount of time has elapsed. It points to a malaise in society that is better to sweep under the rug or die a natural death because of intellectual indolence on the part of media and even government.
The “How” was a subject of even slipshod reportage that would rather give merit to media sensationalism. It is easy to blame the organizers at this point. It would be convenient to blame the organizers at this point. But are the organizers really negligent? Let us go over the facts of their organizational efforts with regards to the tragedy.
What is CloseUp Forever Summer?
CloseUp Forever Summer is an annual Electronic Dance Music (EDM) festival featuring the world's top DJs performing live. The event is delivered and funded by CloseUp/Unilever Philippines with support from its contracted suppliers/co-organizers Eventscape Manila and Activations Advertising.
The event involved private groups and government institutions. This was for par in the staging of such events and the event organizers have managed several such like events before.
The civilian part of the event had 3 main components:
1. The Principal – The main sponsor of the event
2. Event Organizer – The program planning and physical logistics of the event
3. Event Implementor – Manpower and Security operations of the event
4. Venue Owner – Security for the event
The Government component consisted of:
1. PNP Pasay City/Southern Police District
2. LGU of Pasay City
3. Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP)
Also, 5 hospitals were in coordination with the event organizers
As in any event of this magnitude, security and medical contingencies are of critical importance. Thus, the organizers have taken pains in planning and implementing international standards in the conduct of the event. Thus, a total of 485 Security personnel were assigned and deployed during the event and that it adheres to US Security Standards with a ratio of 1:25 in relation to the total attendance of 12,312. US Standards is at 1:30.
The event was subject to pre-event planning that was conducted months before the event and was tweaked at refined even before the day of the event itself.
There were CCTV systems, RFID systems and Evacuation and Emergency Procedures and Protocols planned and implemented for the event. Such as that contingency plans were as thorough and as strict as possible.
There were 6 ambulance teams, 30 EMTs, 2 Doctors and 4 firetrucks that were on standby and operational during the event. There was security briefings and security sweeps before the event was conducted.
Unfortunately, the incidents happened and that 5 individuals separately collapsed in the venue and was quickly attended to by the responders. No one among the 5 fatalities expired in the venue itself.
Based on the planning and implementation figures, the organizers followed industry- standard safety & security procedures in organizing major live events involving large number of audiences. During implementation, the organizers exceeded the required number of security and medical personnel based on US and Government of Western Australia-Department of Health: Guidelines for Concerts, Events, and Organized Gatherings standards. The entry procedures and protocols followed and implemented this year were more stringent than, and actually exceeded, those implemented in similar events in the past.
This was never shown in traditional media, these contingency plans and operations were never given the full light of day.
The tragedy could have been prevented but in a bigger arena and not in the confines of the event. The "How" is still a mystery. As mentioned before, the five fatalities are the product and is the tragedy of a malaise in a current society. Or are we looking at another Reichstag Fire?
