A global crowd safety training and certification for large-scale events has been launched by the Pink Bows Foundation.

The foundation was created by Brian Dubiski and Michelle Dubiski, parents of Madison Dubiski, who was killed in a crowd crush at the Astroworld Festival in Houston in 2021.

The Showstop® Procedure training has been created by experts in crowd safety and management and aims to help prevent event-related fatalities and injuries, such as those that occurred at Astroworld. It also aims to facilitate collaboration with the event industry.

Pink Bows Foundation appointed Steve Allen and Dr. Mark Hamilton from Crowd Safety, a crowd safety management consultancy, to conduct Showstop® Procedure training and certification. The Showstop® Procedure course has been developed by Mr. Allen, Dr. Hamilton and Professor Chris Kemp and approved by The International Institute of Risk and Safety Management (IIRSM) and certified by The CPD Certification Service.

The inaugural Showstop® Procedure training and certification will take place on March 26 in Houston, Texas. Further courses and certification is expected to take place in the UK in April.

“Pink Bows Foundation is on a mission to collaborate with the event industry, raise awareness and create a global standard for crowd safety and management at large-scale events,” said Brian Dubiski and Michelle Dubiski, parents of Madison Dubiski and co-founders of the Pink Bows Foundation. “We have world-renowned crowd safety experts, and we are thankful for the support from global alliances, event organisers, families and the wider community we have received so far. Most importantly – we have the memory of our daughter Madison that will continue to motivate our work with the event industry.”

Hamilton said: “The Showstop® Procedure is a proven and decisive emergency procedure that has been successfully implemented multiple times, worldwide. The Showstop® Procedure rapidly focuses the audience’s attention to reduce the risk of incident escalation, injury or worse. The work of the Pink Bows Foundation will reduce safety risks for audiences during undesirable occurrences and save lives. We are honored and proud to be involved with this positive safety initiative.”

Event Safety Alliance, Event Safety Alliance Canada, Global Crowd Management Alliance and the United Kingdom Crowd Management Association have expressed their support for the work of the Pink Bows Foundation.