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War Memorial Stadium takes extra measures to ensure safety at upcoming games, events

The Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, which oversees the stadium, announced three new actions Tuesday to improve safety: a clear bag policy; the use of security wand on every person who enters the stadium; and a ban on loitering in the concourse.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - The Parkview Patriots are preparing for a football game on Friday, Aug. 31. They are also preparing to be the test case for new security policies at War Memorial Stadium.

The Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, which oversees the stadium, announced three new actions Tuesday to improve safety:

  • A clear-bag policy for all athletic events.
  • Use of a security wand on all patrons entering the stadium.
  • A prohibition against loitering in the concourse.

The procedures are a response to the scare and chaos that occurred during the Salt Bowl last weekend, which resulted in the cancellation of the end of the game between Benton and Bryant.

The first game to take place under the new security protocol will be Parkview’s home game against Springdale on Friday.

As soon as the new procedures were announced, Parkview Principal Randy Rutherford said he sent an email to parents and scheduled a robo-call, as well.

“We’ll blast it more than one time,” Rutherford said. “Just so, again, our constituents that are coming to the game—best we can with the people we know that are coming—will know the rules and those things. Also, we’ll be sharing those with Springdale High School, who’s coming, so that their constituents will know.”

Rutherford said he did not hear much concern from the Parkview community about being the first to play after the Salt Bowl. He mentioned that school administrators often patrol the stadium and make sure everyone stays safe and happy.

“And they’re not going to allow kids to gather down in the corridor, and we typically don’t allow that anyway at our home games,” he added.

Terry Rutledge, the emergency services manager for Arkansas Department of Parks of Tourism, said the stadium’s security team coordinated with the Little Rock School District on the new policy. Rutherford said he had spoken with them and was satisfied that everything will go well on Friday.

“We usually have a very good communication plan with the people over at the stadium,” he said. “They provide security, as well as we bring some of our own. Of course, we bring additional resource officers, and we have five administrators at the ballgame. And, typically, we meet with the visiting administration before the game. So, for the most part, we’re not going to have 35,000-40,000 at our game, as far as people attending, but we try to prepare for most anything that can come up.”

The changes are common at many stadiums, and the clear bag policy will mirror the policy that the Arkansas Razorbacks use for their games in both Fayetteville and Little Rock. Rutledge said the new policies will be in effect for all sporting events, and probably concerts, too, though promoters often have their own requirements.

Rutledge mentioned the “no loitering” policy as something that was not enforced well enough in the past.

“If we get a group of people, five-ten people, and they’re sitting there, talking to each other, and we notice they’ve been there for a little bit,” he said. “We might go up there and say, ‘hey, can you kinda go back to your seat or go to the concession stand? We’re trying to keep it clear.’”

Little Rock police officers will continue to patrol the stadium during games, as will Bryant police officers. BPD has helped with the investigation of the Salt Bowl scare, too, in part because the Hornets have another game at War Memorial Stadium in September.

“You know, that shook up a lot of residents of Saline County,” Rutledge said, “and we thought it would be best if we brought them in, to show them what we’re doing to make it better, so they can go back to their communities—to Saline County, both Benton and Bryant—and say, ‘hey, these guys are fixing the problems, and we’re gonna get there.’”

The Salt Bowl was canceled after a reported fight in the concourse spread pandemonium throughout the stadium. Investigators believe a stun gun was fired, which may have been mistaken for a handgun. The fear of gunfire inside the stadium sent a crowd of more than 38,000 rushing for the exits, and several people were hurt or needed medical attention as a result of the stampede.

Rutledge said the investigation continues, and that park rangers and police officers are following several leads. The initial incident was not captured by the stadium’s surveillance cameras.

Rutledge noted that while metal detection wands were used as people entered the Salt Bowl, many fans were not examined.

“People that we couldn’t see any bulk or anything on them,” were not checked, he said. “You know, t-shirts or tight-fitting clothes. We only wanded the individuals that were coming through with baggy clothing or stuff you couldn’t recognize—bulging pockets.”

Because of the requirement to wand every fan, Rutledge suggested that fans arrive earlier than usual for future games because of the potential for long lines at the gate.

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