The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club plans to review security measures in the wake of a shooting that happened at the racetrack during the last race Sunday evening just before a scheduled concert by rapper Ice Cube. The shooting was the first to happen at the racetrack since it opened in 1937.
Mac McBride, the director of media with the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club said they will closely reevaluate what happened and determine if changes are needed.
“Our people handled it very, very professionally. It was one individual. One individual only,” McBride said.
The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has never had metal detectors at any of their concerts, according to McBride. Instead, security checks bags and purses at the front gates.
There were two security companies at the fairgrounds in anticipation for the Ice Cube concert, with an additional 30 Sheriff’s deputies. McBride said their security detail had previously trained with local law enforcement to prepare for an incident that was similar to what happened on Sunday.
“We’ve had more than 100 concerts here over the years and we’ve never had anything like this before,” said McBride.
In two weeks the Kaaboo Music Festival will be held at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. NBC 7 reached out to organizers of the event to see what kind of security protocols are in place. Here is the response from Kaaboo:
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"Like all members of the Del Mar community, we were saddened to hear about the incident at the Fairgrounds yesterday. As we prepare for our event in the coming weeks, our guests should feel comfort knowing that at KAABOO events, their safety and security is priority number one. During the course of the year, our team undergoes significant training and preparation to keep our guests safe, with security both inside and around the perimeter of our event. We commend the San Diego Sheriff’s Department for their work on Sunday, preventing what could have been a far worse situation, and we look forward to working with them, other authorities, and the rest of our partners in the community to produce another safe and exciting KAABOO Del Mar 2018."
