FY2011 Arlington Fire Department Annual Report FY 2011 | Page 14

Newsletter Title Page 14 Super Bowl XLV, February 2011 February 6, 2011 was the culmination of three years of public safety planning. It was a combined effort of all members of the Fire Department, most City departments, and a host of regional and national partners. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano was briefed on public safety preparations by Chief Crowson during the week of prior to Super Bowl XLV. SB XLV - Logistics Meeting the logistical needs of this event was one of the most complicated challenges the team faced. One of the largest tasks was the construction and maintenance of the public safety compound. This secure area on stadium property was used as the public safety operations base and supported close to 1,000 public safety professionals on game day. It was comprised mainly of trailers and Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) inflatable tents from the City of Arlington and Navarro and Collin Counties. The tents were each powered by individual generators and were utilized for personnel support, equipment staging, and as mobile command posts. A 24-hour crew responsible for EMS and fire rescue response was stationed at the public safety compound beginning January 26 through Super Bowl Sunday. This was the first Super Bowl to offer a fully functioning, 24-hour fire station on the stadium footprint. SB XLV - Operations In anticipation of the large crowds that were expected to flock to Arlington during Super Bowl week, the system was up-staffed by approximately 12 percent and Fire Department leave was cancelled for ten days. This allowed the staffing of additional ambulances, demand engines, dedicated staffing to cover Chemical/ Biological/ Radiological/Nuclear/Explosive responses, and additional coverage assigned to the Arlington Municipal Airport. This would have been sufficient, had North Texas not entered an extremely dynamic weather week. When the temperatures dropped from 57 degrees on Monday to 14 degrees on Tuesday, accompanied by a foot of sleet and ice, many unique challenges arose. EMS call volume in the City increased by 30 percent on average and at one point, multiple calls were holding in 911. On the worst day, February 4, which was foggy with a low temperature of zero degrees, total emergency calls in the City increased by 208 percent. Working Together to Make Arlington Better. 14