Security will be extra tight in and around Fenway Park as the Boston Red Sox start off the World Series on Wednesday night against the St. Louis Cardinals with hundreds of police officers patrolling the area, including a dozen bomb technicians.
Security for sporting events in the Boston area have been modified, with officials adjusting their security measures in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings in April which killed three and wounded more than 260. Fourteen officers who specialize in finding and dismantling bombs have been assigned to conduct protective sweeps at the venue and the areas around it for the first two games, according to the Boston Globe.
"Everyone has been very much keeping an eye out for each other in keeping the city safe," said Boston police Superintendent-in-Chief Daniel Linskey.
City officials urged fans to take public transportation as well as asking bar owners to disperse crowds lined up in front of their venues once their establishments have filled up to capacity.
Linskey also called on fans to leave their backpacks at home rather than take them to the ball park. The Boston Marathon bombing suspects, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, used backpacks to carry pressure cooker bombs that detonated near the finish line of the marathon.
Since the Boston Marathon attacks, the National Football League (NFL) Committee on Stadium Security changed their backpack policy, limiting the size and the type of bags fans can bring into the stadium, stating that bags must be clear plastic, vinyl or PVC and cannot exceed 12" x 6" x 12". One-gallon clear plastic freezer bag (Ziploc bag or similar) as well as small clutch bags , with or without a handle or strap, can be taken into the stadium with one of the clear plastic bags.
"The NFL policy has worked fairly well," says William Squires, owner of The Right Stuff Consulting, to LatinosPost.com. Squires, the former vice president and general manager of Giant Stadium, specializes in sports facility management, having previously served as president of the Stadium Managers Association. "I look at every game as a high-value target that becomes greater as it gets closer to these types of games. The World Series is nationally televised and the bad guys are thinking about that, wanting to be seen."
Boston sports fans have found comfort in watching the Red Sox's run to the World Series since the April bombing, with designated hitter David Ortiz coining the phrase "Boston Strong" as a rallying cry for both the team and the town to honor the city's resiliency.
"It makes people forget. At the same time, we'll be respectful about it," said Game 1 Boston starting pitcher Jon Lester to ESPN. "But if we can take those people's minds off their injuries, their suffering, then that's our job. It's what we've got to do."
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