Lessons from a July 4th Fireworks Display, Part 1

An accident occurred at the Rochester, NH, fireworks display--an event approximately 20,000 people paid to attend. At about 9:30 PM, ten minutes into the show, a shell exploded close to the ground, injuring two workers bad enough they had to be taken to the hospital.

The organizers did something right, and something wrong.

First, the mistake. It was obvious something had gone wrong when the lights came up and the ambulance entered the field. However, there was no official announcement of what had happened, and whether or not the event would resume.

Attendees didn't know whether to remain or leave. The impression was that "nobody was in charge." Most people left. At midnight, the show resumed, but only 100 people remained.

Tomorrow, what they did right, and the implications.