Emergency response crews and organizers of a sold out airshow in Colorado Springs are regrouping after the event’s blazing temperatures contributed to 140 attendees needing treatment for heat-related illnesses.
Capacity crowds of 15,000 flocked to both days of the biennial Pikes Peak Regional Air Show at the Colorado Springs Airport last weekend, drawn in part by the city’s first ever performances from the U.S. Navy’s famous Blue Angels jet pilots.
The National Weather Service in Pueblo recorded a high of 93 degrees in the area last Saturday, but a press release from organizer the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation said temperatures soared to the low 100s on the concrete and asphalt grounds of the event site itself.
Coordinators said attendees were encouraged to take their own precautions for the summer weather, such as water and umbrellas. Shaded cooling areas were also available. Nevertheless Ashley Franco, a spokesperson with the Colorado Springs Fire Department, said the medical tent on site started seeing people facing problems from the heat by mid-morning Saturday, with more coming as the sun bore down.
“It really started to ramp up and we ended up calling in more resources probably around 1 p.m. to come and help at the airport," Franco said.
The number swelled to 100 needing treatment throughout Saturday, with 10 eventually transported to the hospital. Franco said each person taken to the hospital was in stable condition.
Several fire trucks were called in carrying EMTs and paramedics to assist with treatment as the numbers rose. Organizers said water had been available for purchase at more than 30 vendor sites earlier in the day, but as the heat mounted a Colorado Springs Utilities trailer was brought in to supply free water in the afternoon.
Many of these additional resources were kept in place on Sunday and the number needing treatment for the heat dropped to 40 with only one hospitalization, that patient also in stable condition.
“I don't think anything went wrong,” Franco said regarding the response. “We have a set medical tent at every large event in the city, but when we get overwhelmed, we're going to call in extra resources. That's just the plan that we already had.”
While serious and unexpected, the number of people seeking treatment from the heat amounted to less than a half a percentage point of the 30,000 total weekend attendees. Franco said a thorough review of the incident will be conducted by the major stakeholders involved in the airshow, from the airport to the police and fire departments to the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation.
“Nobody’s perfect,” said Lauren DeMarco, communications manager for the sports corporation. “There’s always room for improvement regardless of what happens.”
DeMarco said this year’s event attempted to learn from the biggest hiccup of the 2022 airshow, which was insufficient parking. Attendance to the event was capped at 15,000 per day at the 2024 event to help alleviate that issue.
The fire department also said the air show response benefitted from lessons learned from previous local emergencies.
Franco said the Club Q shooting taught the department it needed a better way to track large numbers of patients on site and transfer that information to local hospitals. Responders to the air show used a new app-tracked wristband system to keep track of those patients.
“We are always learning, we're always looking for new technology on how we can improve and what we can do better for next time,” Franco said.
The Colorado Springs Labor Day Lift Off is the sports corporation’s next local event. DeMarco said plans for the event have not been altered in light of the air show’s heat related illnesses.
