Great! You decided to keep reading! You’re a PLURR Warrior. You’re just our type of person. Please keep on reading the article because there is a lot to cover. Also, please forgive us for being brief on each of the panels. We thought it would be prudent to point out the best take aways from the Safety Summit.
With those images fresh in our mind we proceeded with the conference. The schedule of events started with a moderated discussion from experts in each field: medical, legal, and safety. Each period was then opened up for attendees to ask the professionals question on their particular area of expertise.
Dance Music Northwest moderated the first panel, which consisted of Edwin Reyes, USC Events Medical Consultant; Susan Kingston, Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute at the University of Washington; and Taylor Losey, Resident Nurse. We asked mainly about the red flags we could look for when somebody might be going down a bad road and need helping. Turns out it’s a pretty hard thing to do. Mainly you need to look for people who are confused or alone. Elevated body temperature is a sign, but can only be accurately measured rectally (not exactly a thing you’re going to do on the dance floor).
It is a hard call to make, but if you ever have any doubts, just take yourself or the person you’re with to the medical booth. You will not get in trouble. They will assess where you’re at and send you back out if you’re all good. If you’re not, you may have just saved your own life or the life of your friend. Seems to us that it would be worth missing a little bit of the show to avoid a tragedy. One of the audience members brought up the fact that one of the most dangerous substances is alcohol. Alcohol is readily available at any venue and often leads to more damage to a community than any other substance. It is important to be responsible with alcohol and know your limits, just like everything else.
The next panel was moderated by Kate Becker of the Office of Film and Music. The Panel consisted of Captain John Hayes of the Seattle Police Department; Roger Kohn, USC’s Legal Counsel; and Micheal Manahan, Owner of ReBar on Capitol Hill. Captain Hayes has actually been to some of the festivals we attend. He loves the culture and the production of each of these shows. He loves how much of a community that has been built around this music. If you need help, that’s what they are there for.
A point that was echoed by Roger Khon in discussing the Good Samaritan law: You cannot be prosecuted when seeking help in a medical emergency or getting help for someone else who is in one. On top of that, we also found that officers are rarely allowed in the venues. According to Captain Hayes, they merely form a perimeter and make sure things don’t get out of control out side.
Important things happen in Pacific Northwest nightlife, and DMNW will send you alerts!
