TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa’s Zeeco Oktoberfest opens to the public on October 17 and FOX23 spoke with festival security to see what they’re doing to keep attendees safe.
The Tulsa tradition is expected to get a lot of traction this year, especially after being voted the number one Oktoberfest by USA Today.
Because of this, security is expecting a lot more people.
Between 15 to 20,000 people are expected to attend Oktoberfest this year.
Before people can enter the festival, they must walk through a metal detector.
Retired Tulsa Police officer and head of Oktoberfest security Mark Shelton said this festival usually runs smoothly.
They’re implementing the same security measures as last year.
“Shutting down a lot of the traffic to make it safer. Most folks are coming in on shuttles, which we’vefound that to be a lot safer as well - not nearly as many traffic problems, folks getting hurt like that. We’ve just basically implemented anything we could so people could stay safe and have fun at the same time,” said Shelton.
Officers are stationed in tents and others are roaming the areas.
Officer Shelton said he’s worked 25 Oktoberfests. He said that most security personnel are the same way: they’ve been working this event for years.
“We actually have pretty much the same staff. A lot of the folks that work out here in terms of security, they do it because they love the festival,” said Shelton. “It’s been a tradition for them and once you work it once, you have a tendency to want to work it again. It kind of gets in your blood.”
Officer Shelton said he’s looking forward to a fun and safe event.
He also recommends rideshare apps like Uber and Lyft to ensure everyone makes it home safely.
Oktoberfest opens to the general public tomorrow at 4 p.m. and runs through Sunday at 6 p.m.