'The Wand' Makes Its Debut This Sunday At Soldier Field
CHICAGO (CBS) – At Soldier Field, the security pat-down is becoming passé. Chicago Bears fans should get ready to say hello to the hand-held metal-detecting wand, beginning this weekend.
"It's a test, but with the aspirations that this will become policy," Luca Serra, Soldier Field media director Luca Serra, tells CBS 2's Kristyn Hartman.
Some teams already have begun putting into practice what the NFL has recommended. The wand, for example, debuted in Minnesota last week – and caused some delays for fans.
In Green Bay, Wisc., some fans weren't happy when screening lines backed up just before game time, causing some to miss kickoff.
That could happen in Chicago, too.
"People are going to have heavy gear on, they're going to have heavy coats and lots of layers," Serra says. "And what people are going to be asked to do is to remove their keys and change and cell phones from their pockets -- any kind of metal -- so that it doesn't set the wand off."
About half the fans Sunday will experience the new security way. Select large gates are targeted for the wand phase-in.
Bears fan Carlos Cabrera isn't fazed by the change, saying he gets to games early, anyway. Serra says that's a good idea.
"Make sure you're giving yourself ample time to make the kickoff and hopefully a (Devin) Hester touchdown," he says.
About half the fans will still get the pat-down Sunday. It's all part of the soft launch.
