What were the security measures during Round Rock festival shooting?
ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) --- There are still no arrests or suspects named in the search for those who opened fire at the Juneteenth Festival in Round Rock on Saturday night.
The Round Rock Police Department said 14 people were injured, including children at Old Settlers Park. Two people were killed.
RRPD said it started as a fight between two groups at the event.
'Basically come and walk up from anywhere'
Some festivalgoers are left questioning some of the safety protocols in place for the event.
David Wilkerson is one of them.
"It looked like mass casualties happened."
David Wilkerson, attended Juneteenth Festival
What started as an event filled with great music ended in tragedy.
"You started seeing police come out with their tactical gear," Wilkerson said. "As we walked out, I counted six on stretchers."
Wilkerson said he never saw any security checking people as they entered the area.
"There wasn't any main point of entry, main point of exit. You just basically come and walk up from anywhere," Wilkerson said.
Wilkerson said he didn't see security checking on things from where he stood.
Ultimately, he thought more should've been done to check and scan people coming in.
"There's temporary gates you can put up. There's jersey barriers. There's all kinds of things to stop people from just walking in from anywhere else," Wilkerson said.
The security plan
Round Rock Police Chief Allen Banks said they had a plan for the festival beforehand with stationed officers and other first responders.
"We had over 22 law enforcement personnel assigned to the event," Banks said. "We had folks that were in the sky watch tower, overseeing the crowd as well."
Banks said medics and other security were all on hand. He said they didn't have checkpoints because it was an open-air venue.
The City of Round Rock, one of the organizers for the event, said the Juneteenth festival is structured as an open park set up with a stage.
The Round Rock Fire Department was also present with personnel and equipment to provide on-site medical response if needed. The agencies at City events regularly engage in training to respond to a variety of incidents, including shootings. In preliminary discussions following the event, it is clear that these measures enabled a swift and comprehensive response by first responders that saved lives of innocent bystanders.
The City of Round Rock
Crowd safety expert's perspective
Steve Allen is the founder of Crowd Safety, a crowd management and event safety consultancy.
Allen said there are several factors to consider when holding an event like this.
"What are we going to do to mitigate in this area against firearms or weapons coming in? Because we've got children, we've got teenagers."
Steve Allen, Crowd Safety Founder
Allen said in these situations, it is best to be clear that weapons are not allowed.
"It should be advertised that all personnel coming in will be subjected to a search as a condition of entry," Allen said. "No weapons, or anything that can be deemed as a weapon will be allowed on this event site."