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KeyBank managers tight-lipped on security measures that led to Buffett fiasco

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Managers of KeyBank Pavilion are shedding no light on the changes to security blamed for turtle’s-pace lines Saturday that left some ticketholders stuck outside well after Jimmy Buffett’s set started.

Live Nation Entertainment, the behemoth concert promoter that operates the Hanover Township venue, didn’t respond to questions about the newly installed metal detectors at the entrance to the outdoor venue, where backups extended into the site’s parking lots.

To get through the airport-like security system, concertgoers had to empty their pockets and purses into bins before passing through the metal detectors, which reportedly were so sensitive many comers had to wait while event staff checked them with a wand because they’d set off a machine. The delays meant the queue still stretched into the amphitheater’s parking lot even after Buffett had taken the stage.

Of the several representatives the Observer-Reporter contacted by phone and email Monday, only Emily Bender of Ticketmaster, Live Nation’s ticketing arm, responded.

“Refund requests are handled on a case-by-case basis and any fans who experienced delays are encouraged to contact Ticketmaster Fan Support,” Bender said in a brief email.

In a subsequent email, she said the company had “no further comment beyond that right now,” including whether anyone had received refunds on their tickets and how many people attended the concert. The venue seats about 23,000 people.

Much like the tropical bird that lends its shape to the hats popular among Buffett’s Boomer-heavy fan base, this statement parroted the one the company issued the day after the concert. On Sunday, the company apologized for the “longer than normal wait times” and said it would “continue working hard to prevent situations like this from happening again.” The statement urged fans to contact Ticketmaster’s help line, but offered no specifics.

Among the other questions the company eschewed answering Monday were whether Saturday’s show was the first time the venue had used the new machines, and whether security staff were trained with the metal detectors beforehand.

An employee at the venue’s gate Monday conferred over the radio with a manager before telling a reporter to contact spokeswoman Morgan Nicholson, who didn’t return a call or email before press time.

The company also wouldn’t say whether it planned to make any changes ahead of a show by 1990s bands Weezer and the Pixies – another event expected to draw a large crowd – tonight.

Hanover Township police patrol the area around the venue and are sometimes called upon by event security to make arrests or issue citations against attendees. Chief Stan Henry didn’t return messages seeking comment about what happened Saturday.

Township supervisors also didn’t return a message left for them at the municipal building. An officer who answered the door at the police department referred questions back to Henry.

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