Mayor Walsh outlines public safety plans for Boston Marathon

As the City of Boston prepares for millions of visitors for the 119th Boston Marathon, Mayor Martin J. Walsh today released public safety plans to ensure a successful series of events.

“The Marathon is a major international athletic contest, and a celebration of all that we love about Boston,” said Mayor Walsh. “We have worked together collaboratively, with the Boston Police Department, and all of our partners, to keep everyone safe. We also ask the public for vigilance, and are encouraging everyone, if you see something, say something.”

Public Safety

Boston Police Department (BPD) will have uniformed and undercover officers along the marathon route.
Over 100 cameras will be active along the Boston portion of the Marathon route, and upwards of 50 observation points will be set up around the finish line area in the Back Bay to monitor the crowd.
Spectators are encouraged to leave large items such as backpacks and strollers at home. These items are not banned; however, individuals may be subject to search.
Call 9-1-1 in an emergency situation and follow @bostonpolice for race safety updates.
Boston Fire will have walking patrols along the course to respond to incidents. Patrols can call-in additional assets, utilizing the alleys and adjacent roadways to the course. Air quality monitoring will also be carried-out along the route.
Boston Fire will stage its specialized units for Tech Rescue, Haz Mat, Decon, and additional apparatus at strategic locations on both sides of the course.

Emergency Medical Services

14 ambulances will be located along the Boston portion of the race route to support the 24 ambulances providing service coverage throughout Boston.
140 Boston EMS personnel will be located along the Boston portion of the race route on bicycles, utility vehicles, foot patrol, and in medical tents, in addition to the crews covering the rest of the City.
In addition to the two large medical tents in the finish line area, Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) will have a small medical station on the Boston Common with a 30-bed ambulance bus ready to deploy.

Street Closures & Traffic Advisories

Please see attached traffic advisory from the Boston Transportation Department for full traffic and road closure information.

Vehicle traffic will be prohibited and parking will be restricted on many streets in Boston in the days leading up to the Boston Marathon and on Monday, April 20, 2015.
Using the MBTA to travel to and from Boston on Marathon Monday is strongly recommended. Detailed information on MBTA service can be found at www.MBTA.com. For a faster return trip, the MBTA advises riders to purchase a round-trip rather than a one-way ticket.
On Marathon Monday, Newbury Street and Huntington Avenue outbound will be closed to vehicle traffic to allow easier spectator movement in the area.

Emergency Communications

The City’s Emergency Operations Center will be open on Saturday and Monday to monitor the races. The EOC will be staffed by our city departments, state agencies and our non-profit partners to coordinate the City’s Operational plan. Additionally, the EOC will monitor the weather, maintain situational awareness regarding the various Marathon events, ?respond to any resource requests from public safety ?and manage family reunification if needed.
Boston EMS, Police, Fire, and the Office of Emergency Management ?will have personnel assigned to the multi agency coordination center at the Massachusetts Emergency Operation Center in Framingham.
BPHC will have staffing at the Dispatch Operations Center and Central Medical Emergency Dispatch (CMED) Center where ambulance to hospital communication throughout metropolitan Boston is coordinated.