Now that there has been
time to evaluate the events in Bourke St on Friday 21st January a
number of organisations including The Queen Vic Market will be assessing their
response and making recommendations for future action.
It should be noted that
there was no official government alert
on that day although the escape of youths from Malmsbury detention facility in
the week after, did result in an official
warning from the government. It would appear that lessons have been learnt at all
levels.
There has been plenty of
discussion around the market about the use of SMS’s to advise traders about
emergencies, the use of bollards at key vehicle entry points during trading
hours, and possibly even the permanent closure of Queen St.
Traders are also
asking themselves how they would respond to an emergency and particularly under
what circumstances they would abandon their stall and stock, as well as what responsibilities
they have to their employees.
More will come from this
issue and it is likely that the soon to be formed Trader Representative Committee
will have the question of emergency response high on their agenda.