Mass Gatherings/Special Events
Topic Collection
May 29, 2025

Thousands of pre-planned mass gatherings and special events (e.g., sporting events, festivals, conventions, visits by dignitaries) occur each year across the country and abroad.  Unfortunately, in today’s environment, special events attended by large numbers of people may be considered as terrorist targets due to large concentrations of crowds, the symbolic nature of the event, high-profile attendees, and increased media attention. Extreme weather events such as heat and storms can also quickly turn a mass gathering into a mass casualty event. Mass gatherings also pose a risk for infectious disease outbreaks or may be held during an outbreak requiring adaptations or restrictions. Large concentrations of people may overwhelm the healthcare capacity in a given area, particularly when alcohol or drugs are present. Finally, surging crowds (which may be induced by panic) can cause trampling or suffocation events. It is for these reasons that local, state, and federal authorities should anticipate the public health and medical issues presented by mass gatherings and prepare adequately for a range of response operations. Using incident management systems for planning and operating these events as “planned emergencies” allows a rapid transition to emergency response should an incident occur.

The resources in this Topic Collection include lessons learned, case studies, research, tools, and templates designed to help emergency medical staff create robust plans for mass critical care before an incident strikes their jurisdiction. This Collection does not include resources on mass casualty response but is designed to support pre-incident mass gathering contingency planning. More specific information can be found in the following ASPR TRACIE Topic Collections: Fatality Management, Responder Safety and Health, Burn, Active Shooter and Explosives, Mental/Behavioral Health (non-responders), Pre-Hospital Victim Decontamination, Alternate Care Sites, Pediatric, and Trauma Care and Triage. This Collection was refreshed in May 2025.

Each resource in this Topic Collection is placed into one or more of the following categories (click on the category name to be taken directly to that set of resources). Resources marked with an asterisk (*) appear in more than one category.