CINCINNATI — As thousands of fans head into Paycor Stadium in anticipation of Thursday’s Bengals game, there’s another team working behind the scenes to ensure the event runs safely and smoothly.
Hours before kickoff, Bill Mangas is there with his team of dozens of physicians, nurses and emergency medical techs prepared to handle any emergencies that might arise when thousands of people converge in one small space.
“We try to anticipate what’s going to happen such as, is it going to be heat related or weather related rain, snow, the age of the audience plays a role in that as well,” Mangas said.
The role began in May when Kettering Health was announced the official health care provider of the Cincinnati Bengals. Not long after, Mangas had to manage his first job at the stadium, the Garth Brooks concert, which brought nearly 80,000 people into the building.
Mangas manages EMS team at Cincinnati Music Festival. (Photo Courtesy Kettering Health)
“That took almost eight days of on-site preparations,” he said.
Yet even with the best preparations, Mangas said live events can always bring unexpected challenges. For this concert it was severe weather, delaying the event and forcing the tens of thousands of guests to shelter in place in the stadium’s tunnels.
Despite everything, Mangas said the crew was able to manage the crowd and get everyone back to their seat safely to enjoy the show, a few hours later. There were no serious injuries reported.
“It’s very unique,” Mangas said. “Uniquely different than what we do day to day, but we love that part.”
With that experience under his belt, Mangas said the NFL season has been easier to plan for and predict.
“We have five first aid stations that we have staff at that remain there throughout the event,” he said. “We also have teams that roam the stadium, so if someone’s not able to come to us, we can go to them.”
For the next ten years, Mangas said he’s looking forward to helping the Kettering Health Emergency Outreach team manage emergency services at each home game and major event at Paycor stadium, in the hope that week after week, fans can feel safe watching the Bengals do their job, as his team tackles its own.
“That’s what we like to do,” said Mangas. “We love to help people and that gives us the opportunity to do it on a large scale.”
