Safety of local outdoor events in light of Las Vegas shooting

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - Philadelphia has a well-earned reputation for pulling off big, outdoor concerts on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway--think Welcome America and Made in America.But the mass shooting at an outdoor concert in Las Vegas Sunday has some locals thinking twice.

"It's pretty frightening," one man told FOX 29's Bruce Gordon in a brief interview on the Parkway Monday. "(I'm nervous) usually to the point where I'm praying before they even start."

Philadelphia first responders plan thoroughly for each big outdoor event. But police officials say keeping us safe is high-stakes game of cat-and-mouse with the bad guys.

"I mean you're not thinking about someone shooting from a hotel room," says police commissioner Richard Ross. "So now that's just one more dimension we have to contend with, deal with in these large-scale events."

"Our policy evolves as the threat evolves," says Deputy Commissioner for Special Operations Dennis Wilson. "We always learn from these events.

As the victims of the Las Vegas massacre ran for their lives, local emergency medical expert Adam Scull's mind was racing. His company--Event Medical Staffing Solutions, based in Secane, Delaware County-helps plan and staff EMS response at big events. He says concertgoers can save their own lives by practicing situational awareness and asking a few important questions:

"I always think how do I get out of here? If that exit is blocked, what is my second best resource to get out of here? And if I have to stay, what is a good place to take cover?"

Despite the carnage in Las Vegas, most of the folks we talked to on the Parkway--in the shadow of high-rises that line the venue--say they will not let fear dictate their plans.

Said one woman: "I don't want to give in to the terror of that these people cause."