Fans hit security at Ariana's concert
Thousands of concert goers were stranded Monday night as they struggled to retrieve their bags after Ariana Grande’s concert at the Mall of AsiaArena.
Without any clear warning or prior announcement, fans of theAmerican singer-actress who went to her Manila concert were asked to leave all their belongings and were only allowed to bring their wallets and cellphones inside the auditorium. They were handed out plastic bags to hold their wallets and mobile phones and as a result, three reportedly lost their cellphones, according to a news report of ABS-CBN on Tuesday.
To avoid long lines, even before Ariana finished her last song, “Dangerous Woman,” from which she named her world tour, fans already rushed to the exit doors to get their bags. Many were upset to find their bags scattered on the floor and were piled up, as some of them said, “like garbage.”
The bags were only identifiable through alphabetic and numeric codes, with over 700 numbers under each letter, making it a headache for the ushers and the security personnel to find every bag. Without any order or procedure to follow, the security staff had to find each bag in random, making thousands wait in queue deep into the night. Many fans had to beg for their bags as many of them even had to go home to the province.
According to a concert goer who wished not to be identified, guards also asked them to leave their bags during last week’s “In the Mix” concert, but some fans were allowed to bring their bags anyway if these were small or proven to be almost empty. During Ariana’s concert, however, no one was exempted. Even celebrities who watched had to leave their bags and presumably, go through hell just to get them back.
Even during Ariana’s concert, policemen had been patrolling the grounds non-stop. The police set up tables at almost every corner of the arena. Police presence had been so strong that some of the police would stare at the face of each standing fan several times, somewhat preventing the fans from fully enjoying the concert.
In addition, press photographers were not allowed to enter. A wide barricade separated the stage from fans.
While these stricter security measures had been expected following the terror attack in Ariana’s concert in Manchester last May that killed 23 adults and kids and injured 250, nobody expected that the retrieval of their bags during her Manila concert would be so chaotic. Hence, concert goers are now appealing for promoters and organizers to come up with a more effective baggage claiming system.
Due to these strict security measures, Ariana’s concert is considered as among the most tightly guarded concerts in Philippine history.