This week I had the pleasure of designing and delivering an emergency planning workshop and exercise for the 2016 Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Ennis, Co clare.
The exercise was attended by all the agencies involved in this years Fleadh. Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann is now the largest crowd event held in Ireland each year. Last year over 400,000 people attended the event in Sligo, over the course of the week. With the tradition of Irish music and dance that exists in Co clare it is anticipated that similar numbers will be in Ennis from the 14th to the 21st August.
Emergency preparedness is an essential part of the planning for such an event. The scenario based table-top exercise was designed to focus the attention on the multitude of incidents that can, and do, occur when large crowds are present in an urban setting for an event. The comments that were left on the exercise evaluation forms were all very positive about the exercise and the manner in which the injects tested the event plan and the readiness of the agencies involved.
Plan | Prepare | Perform