Unauthorized Drone Filming Outdoor Event

An unidentified drone is hovering low over your outdoor festival. It's distracting performers, alarming guests, and clearly filming. Your security team can't locate the operator.

Setting: Outdoor music festival, 5,000 attendees, urban park. Category: Security. Pressure level: Medium.

This page is the individual, citable address for this one situation: https://gatheringarchitecture.com/crisis-sim/scenario/drone-disruption

The situation

The drone has been circling for 8 minutes. Crowd is pointing. Headliner's manager is on the radio asking you to 'make it stop or we walk.'

First moves and what each one costs

• Call non-emergency police and the local aviation authority hotline; have your team scan rooftops and parks for the operator — Operator located within 12 minutes — a teenager filming TikTok content. Drone grounded. Headliner finishes the set.
• Stop the show and clear the area until the drone leaves — 5,000 people are bored and angry. Drone leaves on its own 6 minutes later. You've broken the night for nothing.
• Have a security guard try to disable it with a thrown object — Drone falls into the crowd. Two attendees injured. Lawsuits filed.

Preparation notes for this situation

• Coordinate with local police and aviation authority on drone protocols pre-event
• Drone jamming is illegal in most jurisdictions — don't be tempted
• Have a 'no drones' policy clearly communicated and posted

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