3.0 Observations and Analysis
On 15 April 1989, a FA Cup semi-final game between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest was held at Hillsborough stadium. At 2.30pm, it can be seen that thousands of liverpool fans were already crowding outside the turnstiles area. Of which, many of them include fans without tickets. These ticketless fans turned up at the stadium as they are usually able to request for tickets or “spares” during the hours before the kick-off. Police were seen trying to control the crowds outside the turnstiles. This is due to operational order of the day that focused more on crowd control and “hooliganism” rather than crowd safety.
At 2.48pm, the doors for exit C opened, and many fans rushed through the tunnel, into the pens 3 and
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This has led to a stray-off in the objectives leading to the disaster. The police commander, Mr Duckenfield had never commanded a football match, and he also conceded that he did not have a basic knowledge of the layout of the stadium. Therefore, it is recommended that all officers involved in football matches receive specific training in the policing of football matches. This allows them to be aware of serious consequences leading from overcrowding and implement crisis management procedures. All officers should also be made aware of previous incidents which would allow them to more alert and know what to look out for. The commanding officer should also be familiar with the layout of the stadium, to allow for better vision in case of a …show more content…
Hence, the combined capacity for Nottingham Forest fans was 29,800 with 60 turnstiles, whereas the combined capacity for Liverpool fans was only 24,256 with 23 turnstiles. This shows that Nottingham Forest fans were allocated a larger area in the stadium. However, it was known that Liverpool had more fans, which shows an inappropriate distribution of seating area for the fans. Therefore, it is recommended that the organiser allocate the larger areas to the Liverpool fans. This would have allowed about 5,000 more Liverpool fans to enter the stadium. The turnstiles for the South stands and Spion Kop on the east end were also greater, which would not cause a build-up outside the