InTents June/July 2022 - 30

" ...EVENT MANAGERS
ARE BECOMING MORE
PROACTIVE IN THEIR
WEATHER RESPONSE
PLANNING. "
may be less likely to recognize as a threat
that necessitates evacuating the tent. As
Foerster notes, standing under a tent
that's not grounded " is like standing
around outside with a hanger in your
hand. It's about the same risk. "
He continues, " When there's a lightning
threat, the irst instinct is to seek shelter.
If there is not a safety plan in place and
properly communicated to attendees,
people may seek unsafe places, such as
under a tree or in a golf cart. "
" Everything we do has to deal with
that weather, " says Jeff Reder of Clark
Reder Engineering in West Chester,
Ohio. " For example, if I create or design a
concert structure, we need to be intimate
with what could happen with weather
and storms. "
" Event planners need to consider
emergency plans, " says Holt. " We just
make sure they know that a tent is not a
storm shelter. "
SITE SELECTION
" As you look at an event site, there
are a lot of different things you need
to account for, " says Gern. " It's not
just the weather forecast for the time
period the tent will be installed but
looking at the surface and the surface
preparation that may need to happen. "
" There are a handful of things
that have to be considered, some
commonplace, some not, " says Holt.
" Generically speaking, irst thing you
want to consider is geographical location,
followed quickly by soil conditions,
followed by duration-are you going to
bump into those bad weather seasons? "
The ground is also an important factor,
Clouds in the sky make for pretty photos, but
when skies darken, the plan put in place for bad
weather by event organizers can become critical.
Photos courtesy of Industrial Tent Systems.
he says. " Asphalt or concrete are always
the strongest surfaces, but if it's going to
go into dirt or compact gravel, [you've]
got to make sure it is compacted. Make
sure you're getting the full strength of
what that stake is supposed to hold
against. In a storm situation, you want to
avoid soft soil altogether. "
And then there's wind.
" Here in South Texas , even if it's not
hurricane season, if you're doing stuff
at the port of Houston on the water,
it's windy there 365 days a year and
you have to give that consideration, "
says Holt. " All the structures have wind
ratings, and you have to assume that once
a structure is in place, you're meeting all
the engineering requirements, If you're
not doing that, wind rating doesn't matter.
But if you're doing everything by the book,
you can hold tight for longer periods. But
I tell people that if you're dealing with
30 mph winds, you shouldn't be in that
space anyway. You should go home. "
RAINFALL EXTREMES COMMON
Rainfall extremes are becoming more
and more common, leading to such
widely reported events as last year's
deadly looding in New York and several
other large cities. A heavy, fast rainfall
can cause problems quickly at any
30 intents june-july 2022
InTents June/July 2022

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