Manchester attack points to vulnerabilities even at venues with high security, counter-terrorism experts say
A May 22 explosion at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England left at least 22 people dead and 59 others injured. (Sign up for our free video newsletter here)
The explosion at an Ariana Grande concert in the British city of Manchester killed at least 19 people and injured dozens. It is raising new questions about how authorities can better protect large venues.
What we know
The explosion happened near an entrance to the 21,000-seat Manchester Arena just minutes after Grande’s concert ended with the song “Dangerous Woman” and the singer left the stage, witnesses said.
British counter-terrorism investigators think the attack may have been the work of a suicide bomber who entered a crowded area outside the performance space where attendees were streaming out of the concert, according to U.S. law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation.
They cautioned that all information is preliminary and video from security cameras will allow investigators to reconstruct the deadly events. A law enforcement official and a witness said the explosion happened near an entrance where fans typically pick up tickets.
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At least 19 people were killed and 50 injured Monday night in an explosion at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, that police are treating as a possible terrorist attack.
Protecting vulnerable points in the crowd
Michael Downing, executive vice president of security for Prevent Advisors, which specializes in arena and stadium security, said many American and European venues already use metal detectors, bomb detection technology and armies of security guards and cameras inside the facilities.
But the Manchester incident shows the need for more vigilance in areas outside those security zones, such as transportation centers, walkways and parking lots, said Downing, the former head of counter-terrorism for the Los Angeles Police Department.
“Obviously, we are going to have look at ingress and egress,” he said.
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St. Ann’s Square in Manchester, England, is full of tributes Wednesday for the people who lost their lives during the terrorist attack at a nearby pop concert on Monday night.
(Andy Rain / European Pressphoto Agency)
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A memorial grows in central Manchester.
(Andy Rain / European Pressphoto Agency)
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People pause in front of candles set up in Albert Square in Manchester, England.
(Ben Stansall / AFP/Getty Images)
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Fawaz Al Haffar, center, Manchester Islamic Centre and Disbury Mosque trustee, speaks to the news media Wednesday.
(Oli Scarff / AFP/Getty Images)
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A soldier and police officer patrol outside the Houses of Parliament in London on Wednesday. Nearly a thousand military personnel are being deployed around the country as the UK terror status is elevated to critical in the wake of the terrorist attack at Manchester Arena.
(Carl Court / Getty Images)
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Members of the public pause to look at floral tributes and messages in St Ann’s Square in Manchester.
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Manchester City Council workers move the floral tributes from Albert Square to St Ann’s Square on Wednesday.
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A woman hugs a girl wearing a T-shirt from Ariana Grande’s Dangerous Woman tour near Albert Square in Manchester.
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Messages of unity at Manchester’s Albert Square on Tuesday, the day after the deadly attack at a pop concert.
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A woman lights candles set up in front of floral tributes in Albert Square on Tuesday.
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Police officers on Tuesday add to the flowers in Manchester’s St. Ann’s Square for the victims of a deadly explosion at the nearby Manchester Arena.
(Martin Rickett / Associated Press)
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Messages are among the tributes left at a growing memorial in St. Ann’s Ann Square in Manchester, England.
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Ariana Grande concert attendees Vikki Baker and her 13-year-old daughter, Charlotte, leave the Park Inn, where they were given refuge after the explosion at Manchester Arena.
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Police stand guard Tuesday near Manchester Arena, where 22 people were killed in a suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert the night before.
(Jeff J Mitchell / Getty Images)
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Forensic officers work the scene at Manchester Arena on Tuesday.
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Police on patrol in Manchester, England, the day after the explosion.
(Andy Rain / European Pressphoto Agency)
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Tributes are being left in St. Ann’s Square in Manchester, England.
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Workers hug each other after being evacuated from the Arndale Centre shopping mall in Manchester on Tuesday following a security alert.
(Ben Stansall / AFP/Getty Images)
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People sit under a billboard in Manchester city center on Tuesday.
(Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press)
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Police stand behind a cordoned off area near Manchester Arena on Tuesday.
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A man embraces a woman and a teenager on Tuesday as he collects them from the Park Inn Hotel, where they were given refuge after the explosion at Manchester Arena.
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Concert-goers are escorted away from Manchester Arena, where Ariana Grande had performed.
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An injured man is helped from the Manchester Arena.
(Rex Features via Associated Press)
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Police and other emergency services gather near Manchester Arena.
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Police block a road to Manchester Arena after the explosion.
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Police and others help the injured near Manchester Arena.
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Police stand guard at the scene of a suspected terrorist attack in Manchester, England.
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Emergency services personnel speak to people outside Manchester Arena after reports of an explosion at the venue Monday night.
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Police stand by a cordoned-off street close to the Manchester Arena on Monday night following an explosion after an Ariana Grande concert.
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Armed police stand guard at Manchester Arena after reports of an explosion after an Ariana Grande concert.
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Armed police at Manchester Arena after reports of an explosion at the venue during an Ariana Grande concert Monday night.
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Armed police and ambulances at Manchester Arena after reports of an explosion at the venue during an Ariana Grande concert Monday night.
(Peter Byrne / Associated Press)
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Emergency services work at Manchester Arena after reports of an explosion during an Ariana Grande concert.
(Peter Byrne / Associated Press)
He said Los Angeles law enforcement already monitors ingress and egress points at major events such as award shows and special sporting events such as world championships. But Manchester and recent acts of terrorism in Europe suggest more needs to be done, he said.
Terrorists tend to target areas where large crowds gather. Attacks in recent years in Berlin, Paris and Nice, France, have prompted Southern California law enforcement officials to review security measure at train stations and venues such as Staples Center and Dodger Stadium.
But this is a long-running issue that dates back to at least the 9/11 attacks. Security experts have long expressed concerns about a possible terrorism incident at Los Angeles International Airport not inside the terminals but outside where passengers sometimes are forced to line up. LAX has been working to reduce lines forming outside.
Los Angeles law enforcement monitors ingress and egress points at major events such as the Oscars and other award shows, but recent terrorist acts around the world suggest more needs to be done, a counter-terrorism expert said.
(Frederic J. Brown / AFP/Getty Images)
Are ‘vapor wake’ dogs the answer?
Downing said “vapor wake” dogs with more sensitive noses and different training from traditional bomb-sniffing canines can detect suicide bombers.
Traditional bomb-sniffing dogs are trained to smell specific objects. Vapor wake dogs are trained to smell particles in the air and can detect explosives worn on a person even in crowded areas and venues. Such dogs are already employed by the New York Police Department’s counter-terrorism operations, he said. The Los Angeles Police Department also has two of the dogs.
Brian Levin, a terrorism expert and professor at Cal State San Bernardino, said the British have some of the most sophisticated security practices of anywhere. But the incident in Manchester, he said, shows that whenever thousands of people gather at one place, it create targets that are difficult to protect.
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“Even if you harden the perimeters, they will hit at whatever choke points exist,” he said. “So there is always somewhere to hit.”
Richard Winton is a crime writer for the Los Angeles Times and part of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 2011. Known as @lacrimes on Twitter, during 20 years at The Times he also has been part of the breaking news staff that won Pulitzers in 1998 and 2004. He won the ASNE Deadline News award in 2006. A native of England, after getting degrees from University of Kent at Canterbury and University of Wisconsin-Madison, he began covering politics but chose a life of crime because it was less dirty.
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