Munich Oktoberfest bolsters security for millions of visitors

Munich’s Oktoberfest will deploy hundreds of police officers, expanded surveillance and crowd-monitoring systems to protect more than six million expected visitors, BR reported. The festival’s updated security measures will be presented today, ahead of its opening on Saturday.

The security plan was revised after last year’s Oktoberfest faced a bomb threat and closed entrances because of overcrowding. Existing measures will also remain in place.

About 600 police officers and additional security staff will be deployed. Visitors will again be checked at the entrances. Glass bottles, knives and bags with a capacity of more than three litres will be prohibited.

In addition to police cameras, the city has installed cameras across the entire festival grounds. Images will be sent to a new security centre, where artificial intelligence will generate so-called heat maps showing where crowds are building and where numbers could become excessive.

Crowdspotters will support the assessment. The specialists will remain in constant contact with festival management and the authorities.

The city has also been promoting its How to Wiesn campaign on social media, particularly for visitors from outside Munich. The campaign explains that the festival has several entrances and points visitors towards the Oide Wiesn when the main grounds become too crowded.

Another safety measure is the Safe Now app, developed by a Munich company and available free of charge. Users can press a button to request help in cases such as harassment, physical altercations or medical emergencies. Security staff are then alerted and receive the caller’s location to within a few metres.

Eight large festival tents are participating in the app for the fourth year. The Oktoberfest medical service is also connected to it.

The medical service is based at the Wiesn ambulance, a facility resembling a small hospital with treatment rooms, minor operating theatres and a computed tomography scanner. More than 7,000 patients were treated there last year, and a similar number is expected this year. Cases range from alcohol poisoning and injuries after fights to cuts.

Visitors can be taken to the Wiesn ambulance on stretchers when necessary. Two decentralised medical containers are also available to help in crowded conditions. Oktoberfest director Christian Scharpf said assistance would arrive within less than four minutes in an emergency.

The ambulance service treated 1.6 percent of patients in hospital last year, helping to reduce the burden on the city’s hospitals. Aicher Ambulanz has 430 paid and volunteer emergency workers at the festival, including almost 40 doctors. The Wiesn ambulance is located in the service centre behind the Schottenhamel tent.

The service centre also houses a Safe Space for women and girls. Visitors seek help after losing companions or important belongings such as mobile phones and hotel keys, or after being robbed. Others have experienced sexual or physical violence. The Sichere Wiesn team offers advice and support, accompanies women and girls when needed, and can provide blankets and clothing.