As investigators in Wisconsin piece together the tragedy at a Christmas parade over the weekend, local parade organizers are revisiting their safety plans.
"We're obviously heartbroken for the loss of life and injuries that resulted in Wisconsin,” said Paul Ross. “It's a terrible, tragic situation."
Paul Ross is a committee member for Tulsa's Christmas Parade and the Vice President of American Waste Control. He says safety is always at the top of their mind in both preparations and during the parade.
"This is a very central concern for us and the board and one of the things we do is contract with the Tulsa Police Department to provide security," said Ross.
In light of Sunday’s tragedy in Wisconsin, where a man drove through a Christmas parade killing 5 people, Ross called Tulsa Police this morning and developed a plan to up security, even more, just to be safe.
"Increase the officer count,” said Ross. “Sometimes there's just one officer at an intersection. We're going to have two. We're going to have patrol cars there."
Ross says there will also be more officers for crowd control and like years past, medical on standby but one thing that won't change, he says, is the fun.
The 95th annual parade will feature floats, Santa, and a whole lot more.
"I know there are people coming in from Arkansas and Oklahoma City and Edmond area to come to Tulsa Christmas parade,” said Ross. “We trust it's going to be a great turnout. And we're really excited about it and we're taking the proper steps to ensure that it's a fun, safe environment for it."
Tulsa’s Christmas Parade is on December 11th at 11 a.m.