A study to help get large-scale events back up and running will
be collecting and analysing data from test events in London,
including this weekend’s FA Cup Final and the BRIT Awards.
The UCL research team, led by Dr Liora Malki-Epshtein (UCL Civil,
Environmental & Geomatic Engineering - CEGE) will analyse
data from large sports and music events which are being organised
with the UK Government’s Events Research Programme in London.
Ensuring venues minimise any potential Covid-19 risk is essential
to allow the industry to pick back up as restrictions ease.
Around 22,000 people will attend the FA Cup Final between Chelsea
and Leicester this Saturday 15th May at Wembley Stadium. Of
those, 12,500 are club supporters, 9,500 are Brent residents, key
workers, Wembley Stadium guests and FA stakeholders. Over 4,500
attended Tuesday’s BRIT Awards.
The study, carried out in collaboration with the AIRBODS
consortium project (Airborne Infection Reduction through Building
Operation and Design for SARS CoV-2), will create clear guidance
on how to design and operate non-domestic buildings to minimise
the risk of airborne transmission of Covid-19 and other viruses.
The team is monitoring the indoor air quality and movement of air
at different locations around the test venues to understand the
impact of ventilation and how this relates to the number of
people present in different spaces at an event. They are also
carrying out a microbiological analysis of surfaces and air
around the venue.
Dr Malki-Epshtein commented: “The scale of the planning and
logistics that go into such events behind the scenes is truly
impressive, and Covid safety is one more issue that event
managers need to take into account in addition to those already
incorporated in planning.
“Despite the understandable nervousness felt by many people about
this, many more are keen to return to normality and there is a
sense that the amazing sporting and musical talent the UK has to
offer is a bright light at the end of a long, dark tunnel.”
The data will help the team to develop an understanding of what
risks could be present and where, and support event managers when
planning how to ensure events are as safe as possible. The study
will also provide guidance on what ventilation measures can be
taken to mitigate risk.
The team will compare the London studies with data from events
already held in Liverpool and Sheffield and will generate a
substantial dataset on the environment in and around events
across the board, from large scale to smaller ones, both indoors
and outdoors.
“The first phase of the work will be one piece of the puzzle
informing government policy on the feasibility and possibility of
reopening events safely in the summer and beyond,” added Dr
Malki-Epshtein. “We cannot control human behaviour at events but
we can help to ensure that the environment the participants are
in, is as safe as possible.”
Inadequate ventilation has been highlighted as a risk factor in
terms of the possible airborne transmission of Covid-19 in
buildings. AIRBODS aims to quantify the risk of this transmission
through a combination of experimental work, measurement of
environmental factors in buildings and computer modelling.
The environmental field studies carried out will lay the
foundation for work done by the UCL team and the rest of the
AIRBODS consortium, led by Professor Malcolm Cook (Loughborough
University). The captured data will enable the researchers to
develop a Relative Exposure Index, which, although not an
absolute measure of the risk of transmission, will enable event
managers to gauge the risk of exposure relative to a benchmark
case.
The research consortium is comprised of academics from
Loughborough University, the University of Cambridge, the
University of Nottingham, the University of Sheffield, London
South Bank University and UCL.
UCL team member Dr Lena Ciric (UCL CEGE) said: “Being involved in
the Events Research Programme has given us the opportunity to
collect an unprecedented amount of data at major entertainment
venues using a holistic approach which includes measuring air
flow, air quality, microbiology and looking at crowd movements.”
AIRBODS Principal Investigator Professor Malcolm Cook
(Loughborough University) said: “The large-scale events industry
has been shut down for over a year. The work we are doing will
help get these types of events and venues back up and running in
a safe way, providing scientifically proven information and
advice on ventilation and building management, to reduce the risk
of airborne transmission of Covid-19 and other viruses as much as
possible.”
AIRBODS is funded by UKRI Covid-19 Research Funding.
