(Memphis) – Watching explosions go off at the finish line at the Boston Marathon was a chilling sight for Elaine Hare.
“I was stunned and saddened,” she said. “I can’t fathom the reason.”
She organizes the largest 5 k in the State of Tennessee, Memphis’s own Race for the Cure.
“We`re fortunate that we are also in a suburban area. We`re very spread out not in an urban building. We have security that starts day before.”
While she’s confident in the security of her event, she said security measures will be scrutinized for the upcoming next race.
“Our race is in October and I`m certain that I will be having a meeting next week our with law enforcement to address it.”
“With every incident there is a potential to learn,” Memphis Fire Dept. Lt. Wayne Cooke said.
If an incident like the one in Boston were to happen in Memphis, Lt. Cooke said his special operations response team would go into high gear.
“We want to stabilize the scene as soon as possible. We will isolate the scene as soon as possible, and assess scene especially for secondary devices,” he said.
He said fire crews will work in a unified command a combination alongside EMS and law enforcement.
With big events coming up like Memphis in May, he said his team will now study the Boston marathon blasts to learn and prepare.
“We are always evaluating our program and constantly training our personnel to make sure we are up on latest technology and the latest equipment,” he said.
