Event Planning for Hayrides---Accident Prevention Considerations

Imagine this---A festival was coordinated by a church as an annual fall fund-raiser. Aside from the traditional games and rides one of the crowd pleasers was a tractor pulled hayride. The hayride was offered to people of all ages and was offered every 15 minutes or so during the two-day event from sunset to 10 pm. There were two tractors and each was pulling a flatbed trailer of bundled and stacked hay. The hay was bundled with twine in 2 places lengthwise. The hay was stacked in a manner that provided tiered seating. It was stacked 3 high to the center of each trailer. Each trailer could provide seating for 20. There were no guardrails on either trailer. Each tractor trailer was following an established route around the perimeter of a corn field. The tractor trailers would leave together for each run.

A young woman was on the trailer of the lead tractor. About halfway through the ride the young woman told a friend that she felt like she was slipping off of her seat. They soon realized that the hay bundle she was seated on was coming undone. She tried to adjust herself into a more stable position but failed. The tractor hit a bump and she slipped off the back end of the tractor trailer. The area was dimly lit from indirect lighting and neither tractor trailer had functioning headlights. The young girl was ran over by the oncoming tractor and killed on scene. The roar of the engines and proximity of the trailers prevented the drivers from being able to respond appropriately and quickly to the screaming on-lookers.

Things to consider as event planners:

• Should a pre-event hazard assessment/analysis have been conducted? Would this determine inspection requirements, training needs, communication concerns and more?

• Could have an inspection program prevented this? What should they have been inspecting?

• Who should have performed the inspection(s)? How often should you be inspecting?

• What should you do with the inspection findings? How long should you keep them?

• Should you document this incident? How do you document it? How long do you keep the records?

• Could have improved communication prevented this?

• Should this operation be continued?

• Which authorities should be contacted? What is the time frame?

• What should be done for the family of the deceased?

• What should be done for the employees at the event?

• What could be the ramifications of your actions/inaction's?

Event & Meeting Professionals---Accommodating People with Food Allergies

Imagine this---You are planning an evening gala at a hotel. You have selected a location that has an impeccable reputation for service and accommodating people’s every need. You took extra care in your selection because you needed to accommodate 10 attendees with special dietary needs---several of them were high profile clients. The chef at this hotel was world renowned and was readily available to discuss and plan for service. Prior to the event you met with the chef to explain the menu and address the concerns of several key meals. It was explained that one of the guests was highly allergic to egg and dairy. The chef said he would personally oversee the egg- and dairy-free meal.

As stated, the chef personally cooked and delivered the egg- and dairy-free meal. The chef assured the guest that the meal was allergy free and had met her egg- and dairy-free requirements. The guest thanked the chef profusely and never doubted for a second that there would be a problem with it. The guest took several bites of the meal and started to have an allergic reaction. Within minutes the guest was experiencing anaphylactic shock---her throat was closing and she was having difficulty breathing. Fortunately, someone new about her allergies and Epi-pen and was able to obtain it and administer a shot. Unfortunately, she had left her Epi-pen in her coat at the coat check---which wasted valuable time nearly resulting in her death. The woman survived, but was taken to an area hospital for further treatment and observation. The quick action of a friend and the organized effort by staff to call EMS prevented a tragic incident from occurring. It was later determined that the chef had used a utensil that had trace elements of egg from another dish.

Some things to consider:

•Did the chef commit to something he did not fully understand? What should the chef have done differently?

•Are most chefs and cooks fully aware of the sensitivities allergic people have to food? What can be done to change this?

•How do you prevent this from happening? What type of questions should you ask?

•What kind of policies and procedures should have been in place to accommodate guests with food allergy concerns?

•Should you train staff to respond to allergic reactions? How do you train them?

•Can you deny a person service based on food allergies? Why or why not?

•What should the allergic person have done differently?

•Did the chef open himself and the location up to liability as a result of his actions? Why or why not?