Consequence of Turning Movements in Pedestrian Crowds during Emergency Egress

Abstract

Collective egress comes into play during emergencies such as natural disasters or terrorist attacks, when rapid egress is essential for escape. An important aspect of collective egress under emergency conditions is the turning movement when a sudden change in the direction or the layout of the escape area occurs. Previous case studies of crowd disasters have highlighted the importance of such turning movements; however, both qualitative and quantitative studies seldom address this phenomenon specifically for emergency and panic situations. The paucity of complementary data on human panic presents a considerable challenge to undertaking quantitative analysis. The study described in this paper uses empirical data from real-life video footage of a crowd stampede and from panicking ants, paired with a simulation model, to demonstrate how potential problems and consequences of turning movements during collective dynamics can be studied. With this modeling tool, it may be possible to develop evacuation strategies and design solutions that can prevent stampedes and trampling, which occur when large groups of people try to escape from confined spaces where escape path directions abruptly change.