April 2013 - Parks & Recreation - 54

UNDER FIRE

This guide, prepared by the Department
of Homeland Security, offers an excellent
resource for park and recreation agencies
working to establish effective emergency
and security protocols. See blue link on
this page for download.

Establishing Contingency Plans
As grants and risk manager for North
Carolina's City of Raleigh Parks and
Recreation Department (RPRD),
Kathy Capps spends her days working to minimize preventable risks on
playgrounds, in sports facilities, in
the agency's vehicle fleet, and elsewhere. After all, the practice of play
involves a certain possibility of in-

Patrons of a city's park facilities and participants in
its recreation programs don't always acknowledge
the risks of an unstable and violent person coming in
and wreaking havoc.
As we've all seen in the news recently, large-scale attacks are a very
real threat in today's world, and public places filled with people are where
violent individuals can inflict the most
damage. This month's bombings at the
Boston Marathon injured almost 200
people, three of whom lost their lives.
When it comes to the possibility
of violent threats, parks and recreation agencies need to prepare for
incidents on a broad scope, ranging
from large terrorist attacks to smaller
robberies or workplace altercations
that could still turn deadly. Although
it's not always possible to predict a
violent incident, agencies can take
steps to minimize risks, deter potential threats, and respond quickly and
effectively to dangerous situations.

jury, and although participants and
their parents acknowledge the possibility of getting hurt while playing
soccer or climbing on a jungle gym,
Capps works diligently to ensure that

This active shooter response poster offers
an on-the-spot guide to getting out of a
dangerous situation safely.

Parks & Recreation

| A P R I L 2 0 1 3 | W W W. N R PA . O R G

each person's trip to one of Raleigh's
parks ends as enjoyably as it began.
But patrons of the city's park facilities and participants in its recreation
programs don't always consciously acknowledge the risks of an unstable and
violent person coming in and wreaking
havoc. For Capps, this is the scariest
and most difficult risk to minimize.
" What really solidified for our staff
the need to prepare for these kinds of
emergencies were the attacks in Norway, " says Capps, recalling the 2011
incidents in which a lone gunman
claimed a total of 77 lives. " [The shooter] attacked at a camp, and so many of
our staff run summer camps with limited cover. They got to thinking, 'I have
all these kids in my care every single
day....What resources do I have?' "
The department had been thinking
about developing a preparation plan
for what they call " human threats " -
shootings, hostage situations, kidnappings, robberies, explosions, etc.-for
several years and had already begun
compiling some procedural standards, but the Norway incidents
kicked their planning into overdrive.
To start, Capps searched online for
existing preparedness plans and
found a wealth of information.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has prepared a number
of resources for preventing and responding appropriately to both specific and general threats, including
one highly useful document for park
and recreation agencies titled " Protective Measures Guide for the U.S.
Outdoor Venues Industry " (www.
parksandrecreation.org/uploadedFiles/wwwparksandrecreationorg/
Articles/2013/April/dhs-2011-protective-measures-guide-for-us-outdoor-venues-industry.pdf). This 70page document, published in June
2011, acknowledges the unique challenges outdoor venues face in terms
of security and provides detailed

April 2013 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2013 - Parks & Recreation