The short list for festivals; weather safety

Jay Barracato

Jay Barracato

Graduate Student
Jan 11, 2011
1,528
4
38
Solomons MD
My new short list of questions for arriving onsite at a festival:

1. Who is responsible for calling/delaying the show in the casethan of inclement weather?

2. Where is this person located during the show?

3. How will this person communicate with the stage?

4. What tools will this person use to monitor the weather?

5. What is the emergency response plan for evacuation/ shelter, etc.?

I tried to keep the list short and to the point. If a promoter or there representative can not answer these, that will be a major red flag.
 
That also makes it solely your responsibility and frankly I have better things to be focused on during the show. The person monitoring the weather should not be distracted by other responsibilities.

Maybe I should also clarify I am talking about my role as a BE and am working on someone else's rig.
 
Re: The short list for festivals; weather safety

That is a very good list. Short and to the point. These are definitely things that should be communicated clearly to everyone involved. As BE, you should be sure to know who is the one in charge. If you're concerned, and someone not in charge says press on, you need to know who the final contact is that makes the decision.

As the BE, this information is also valuable, since there is a good chance people will ask you for this information as well. By the time an emergency arises, it's too late to figure it out.
 
Re: The short list for festivals; weather safety

Gee, and here I was going to charge in here and start preaching the benefits of NOAA weather radio, HAM radio, Skywarn, and NEXRAD radar on your phone/tablet.

For those who don't know already, and want a weather radar app for your phone or table, there are two that do the job very nicely: RadarScope is available for both Apple and Android devices, and Pykl3 Radar is available for the Android. Both give you real time access to all of the NexRad Level 3 data feeds for every WSR-88D weather radar in the country, and even feature dual-polarization for those radars that have had the dual-pol upgrade. They are both in the $10 price range and include the data feed (though you can buy your own dedicated data feed if you wish).
 
Re: The short list for festivals; weather safety

Justice C. Bigler said:
Gee, and here I was going to charge in here and start preaching the benefits of NOAA weather radio, HAM radio, Skywarn, and NEXRAD radar on your phone/tablet.

For those who don't know already, and want a weather radar app for your phone or table, there are two that do the job very nicely: RadarScope is available for both Apple and Android devices, and Pykl3 Radar is available for the Android. Both give you real time access to all of the NexRad Level 3 data feeds for every WSR-88D weather radar in the country, and even feature dual-polarization for those radars that have had the dual-pol upgrade. They are both in the $10 price range and include the data feed (though you can buy your own dedicated data feed if you wish).
Click to expand...

I hope someone onsite is looking at those, but the fundamental problem is that I am too busy to be constantly watching the weather myself (I do have a local warning system installed on my phone, but I have no idea what its coverage area is for when I am on the road).

If nothing else, the last couple of years have shown, that the promoter needs to provide this service. If it is passed on to the production company, it needs to be a line item that provides for extra crew/equipment, not just something tacked onto their responsibilities. If the promoter/crew chief/stage manager cannot quickly give me those answers, it will be a red flag that I shouldn't be diving into my own responsibilities oblivious to what is happening around me. (On some of the summer runs where we have hit 6 festivals in 6 days, sometimes I am not sure what state I am in, let alone what the local forecast is).
 
Re: The short list for festivals; weather safety

Good list. The bottom line is that we are responsible for someone (band members, crew members, yourself) and someone is responsible for you (Promoter, Production Mgr and again... YOURSELF). Never be afraid to speak your mind on the issue.

I work as the production manager for an Artist which means I get to be the be fall guy for holding or calling a show. I don't mess around when it comes to the safety of people. I have instructed my guys to walk off the stage on my cue if there's a health and safety issue. I told them to not even try to explain over the mic to the audience why they are leaving the stage so they don't have responsibility placed on them for giving bad information. It's all discussed in advance who will make what announcements. It's important for you to have a plan of action in place.
 
Re: The short list for festivals; weather safety

Justice C. Bigler said:
Gee, and here I was going to charge in here and start preaching the benefits of NOAA weather radio, HAM radio, Skywarn, and NEXRAD radar on your phone/tablet.

For those who don't know already, and want a weather radar app for your phone or table, there are two that do the job very nicely: RadarScope is available for both Apple and Android devices, and Pykl3 Radar is available for the Android. Both give you real time access to all of the NexRad Level 3 data feeds for every WSR-88D weather radar in the country, and even feature dual-polarization for those radars that have had the dual-pol upgrade. They are both in the $10 price range and include the data feed (though you can buy your own dedicated data feed if you wish).
Click to expand...

There is a free app..Radar Now. It works very well for my Andriod. It doesn't have a lot of bells and whistles, but it does show rain..
 
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