Pasadena Police Teach Indio Police a Thing or Two About Major Event Crowd Control

The Pasadena Police Department taught the Indio Police Department a thing or two about how to better handle large indoor crowds during the Coldplay concerts at the Rose Bowl in late August.

In preparation for Desert Trick, a mega-rock festival set to kick off in October featuring the Rolling Stones, the Who, Paul McCartney and other major headliners, members of the Indio Police Department teamed up with Pasadena police officers to better learn how to handle large crowds at indoors venues, according to a report by The Desert Sun newspaper.

They picked a good place to practice, as about 100,000 concertgoers enjoyed the UK rockers perform hits from their newest album as well as classic favorites.

Though Indio police are not newcomers when it comes to handling crowds, as evidenced by their two decades of managing the hundreds and thousands of people who flock to Riverside every summer to attend music festivals such as Coachella or Stagecoach Country Music, they are more familiar with managing concerts that are outdoors.

“This venue is basically a stadium that’s going to be built outdoors,” said Sergeant Dan Marshall of the Indio Police Department in an interview with The Desert Sun. “We know how to do a festival, there’s no doubt about that … but this is different.”

Indio police and city staff have been preparing for Desert Trip since it was announced after last year’s Coachella festival, according to the report. When Desert Trip arose, Pasadena offered the Coldplay concert to Indio police as practice.

According to Marshall, Indio police spend several hours at the Rose Bowl prior to the Coldplay concert learning about protocol, but left prior to the actual concert starting.

Marshall told The Desert News that the most valuable experience he got was getting to see what they had gotten right in terms of planning for Desert Trip.

“We walked away with reinforcement that we’re on the right track,” he said.