Philadelphia Club Hosting Pride Party Ramps Up Security
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The mass shooting at the Orlando nightclub where a gunman attacked members of the LGBT community is putting many people celebrating pride around the country on edge.
A Philadelphia club hosting a large pride party Sunday took the necessary precautions to help keep their patrons safe.
"We want to make sure that our customers, our staff, everybody is safe in our building," says ICandy owner Darryl Depiano.
The line to get into the gayborhood club stretched down the street with people excited to party.
Depiano says this is a big weekend for them, and they are stepping up their security in the wake of the Orlando shooting:
"We spoke with the Philadelphia Police Department. They recommended, and we agree with them. that we're checking all bags and we're patting anybody down that has larger garments on that could cover up anything. We're taking all security precautions for ourselves, our staff and all the customers."
Depiano says just a few years ago he was in talks to purchase Pulse nightclub where the shooting took place, and he's friends with the owner:
"We have spoken to her at least six times. Her last text to us was thank you very much for your support."
Scott McFern is the club's manager. He used to work at Pulse in Orlando and says he's worried about the wellbeing of his former coworkers:
"It's so scary out there today in the world, anything can happen anywhere and unfortunately something did families and parents are wondering if their children are alive. It's very scary."
But Depiano says they will not let someone's hateful actions ruin their celebration of love.
