Rose Parade plans more barriers in wake of truck terrorism in Europe

Police plan to use parked patrol cars and heavy, water-filled barricades at key crossings along the 5.5-mile Tournament of Roses parade route in response to recent terrorist attacks that used trucks as weapons.

In announcing the new security measures on Wednesday, Pasadena Police Chief Phillip L. Sanchez stressed there was no known threat to the parade, the Rose Bowl Game or the city of Pasadena. But he said the changes were made in an abundance of caution, adding that parade security is frequently tweaked as terrorism tactics and threats evolve.

The barriers will be placed at more than 50 intersections along the route.

“When [attackers] use vehicles as a ramming tool, typically it’s because they’re able to generate a lot of speed. So we’re trying to take the speed out of that equation,” Sanchez said.

Twelve people died and dozens more were hurt when a truck plowed into a Berlin market last week. A similar truck attack occurred in Nice, France, earlier in the year, killing 86 and injuring hundreds.

Police and counterterrorism officials have been discussing ways to guard against truck attacks since the Nice attack. Officials have said the incident exposed vulnerabilities when large crowds gather in one area.

The new measures in Pasadena were announced as police outlined the more typical security rules for the Jan. 2 parade: No drones. No selfie sticks. No umbrellas.

The list of “don’ts” has grown longer for those who plan to enter secure areas of the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl this year, but officials say the security measures are crucial for an event that draws 700,000 people or more to the streets of Pasadena.

Sanchez said the barricade plan already was in place before the Berlin attack earlier this month.

Drivers should be aware of the barricades, and all visitors should allow extra time navigating to the events, Sanchez said.

Since the Nice massacre, security officials have been discussing ways of preventing truck attacks. The Rose Parade, given its geographic size and the number of visitors, could pose greater challenges than protecting smaller venues or specific buildings.

At high-level government facilities and even the Academy Awards in Hollywood, approaching vehicles must zigzag through series of barriers that prevent any vehicle from building up speed by driving directly down the road.

Since Timothy McVeigh used a Ryder rental truck packed with ammonium nitrate to attack the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995, killing 168 people, counterterrorism officials have run scenarios with trucks entering downtown L.A. and Los Angeles International Airport and being detonated.

The heightened security measures in Pasadena, which also will include security checkpoints for ticketed parade patrons and walk-through metal detectors for those going to the game, underscore a “new normal” for the public holiday celebration, Sanchez said.

He urged people to be “minimalists” and leave their pets, firearms — even if licensed — and anything extraneous at home, even for those not entering protected zones.

“You can see how serious we are about this event. We are well-prepared. Our efforts are well-refined. This is not new ground for us,” he added.

Sanchez said about 1,500 officers — including local police as well as Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and agents from several federal law enforcement organizations — will be patrolling the area in uniform and in plainclothes.

He added that many security measures “will be visible and obvious to the public, but many will not be.”

Officials are urging residents to use the public-safety mobile app Nixle and to text “ROSEPARADE” to 888 777 to receive updates about events. Text-message technology can be helpful because it uses a different data channel than Web browsing on mobile devices, in case of an outage, Pasadena spokesman William H. Boyer said.

A full list of security recommendations for the events can be found at the Tournament of Roses website.

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4:15 p.m.: This post was updated with a reworked top and new material.