On April 15, 2013, Chechen brothers Dzhokhar and Temerlan Tsarnaev set off pressure cooker bombs at the Boston Marathon, changing the lives of more than 260 people. This year the city of Boston is tightening security measures for the upcoming marathon.
It has recently been reported by USA Today, The Boston Globe and other media outlets that the state will assign 3,500 officers security detail along the 26 mile course. This is more than double the amount of security that was present last year.
All people attending the Boston Marathon are strongly advised against bringing concealed bags or containers like, backpacks, roll bags, and coolers. Instead people are asked to bring all of their personal items in clear plastic bags, so they are easily seen by police personnel.
If anyone is to bring their belongings in a closed off, concealing, “bulky bag” the Boston police department has stated that searches will be administered.
One more thing the Boston Marathon security regulations have considered is that the unregistered runners, or “bandits,” will not be allowed to run this year. Anyone running at all has to be officially registered for the Marathon.
All of this considered, the regulations are not as stringent as I imagined they would be when I heard that the security would be beefed up for the upcoming Marathon. Last year was devastating for the city and to enjoy an event as a city harmoniously the new regulations are not asking for too much.
Of course, there are some necessities that one may need and would rather keep concealed, but still, there is no reason to bring something you are not supposed to.
As for bandit runners, the police want to know who is running so if they see a strange runner then they can then take the necessary precautions.
This raises the question, though, of why only take these security measures for the Marathon? There have been more large gatherings of people in Boston other than the Marathon, but those events had very minimal security.
Case in point: the Red Sox Parade. I was there and frankly, given the size of the crowd, security was severely lacking.
If we are so worried of another attack, why should we only take extra safety precautions on one day? Shouldn’t all the major events in Boston be made secure?