As many as 9,600 police officers will be present daily in the vicinity of places of worship during Easter to ensure public safety, spokesman for the Romanian Police Bogdan Ghebaur told a news conference on Patriarchate Hill in Bucharest.
Between April 18 and 21, in order to keep publicorder and safety, both in areas with a large influx of people and in the vicinity of places of worship, there will be 9,600 police officers, on average, daily. Along with them, the other law enforcement officers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs act at national level to secure public order and peace," said Ghebaur.
According to him, measures were provided for keeping order in crowded places, in the vicinity of places of worship, where religious services are to be held, as well as in tourist, recreational areas and near border crossings.
Nationwide, an average of 1,600 highway police officers in places with a high risk of accidents and at times with heavy traffic, to combat speeding, prevent accidents and road blockages, as well as for the direction, fluidisation and control of traffic on the main communication routes to and from tourist resorts.
In order to monitor road traffic and coordinate traffic devices, helicopters from the General Aviation Inspectorate will be used on the main arteries when heavy traffic is expected. In order to prevent serious traffic accidents and maintain a cautious attitude in traffic, highway patrols will act on average using 450 devices throughout the country.
"We recommend all citizens to take into account a minimum of self-protection measures in order to spend the Easter mini-breask in peace. Drive accordingly and attentively, especially on the night of Resurrection, when we have people moving to places of worship. In crowded areas, do not let children play unsupervised, tell them that they are only allowed to leave with your permission and teach them to call the police whenever they need help. Be sure to lock your home when you leave home. In case of emergency or if you have assisted, or you are aware of the commission of any antisocial act, call with confidence to the nearest policeman or to the Single Emergency Service 112," Ghebaur said.
A similar message came from the spokesperson of the Romanian Gendarmerie, Ana Maria Burchi, who recommended all those who will participate in the events of this period to avoid involvement in actions likely to disturb the smooth running of events, to respect the recommendations of the law enforcement agencies, to pay special attention to children, and if they witness the commission of illegal acts, to use the support of the gendarmes who are ready to offer them help.
"Every day over 6,000 gendarmes are present at all the events that take place in the public areas in order to avoid any incidents. On the night of Resurrection, about 8,000 gendarmes will be in the streets to ensure public peace at national level near more than 14,000 places of worship, but also on people's travel routes," Burchi said.
Public PRDERmeasures are intensified and preventive actions are carried out in areas with intense traffic and arteries in order to avoid possible situations that may disturb the smooth running of events.
"On the seaside, at the resorts where there is a large number of tourists, such as Mamaia, Vama Veche, Mangalia and Costinesti, the gendarmes will set up mobile intervention teams ready to respond in case of disturbance of public order. (...) Every day over 170 mountain gendarmes are on the routes and tourist resorts, equipped and prepared to intervene to provide support to people in difficulty, and also in case of deviations from the legal norms."
Spokesman for the General Emergency Managment Inspectorate (IGSU) Marin Adrian says that at the operational level, about 5,000 firefighters a day, using over 4,000 pieces of technical hardware are mobilised to ensure rapid intervention in providing emergency medical assistance, extinguishing fires and rescuing people in danger.
"Considering the specificity of these days, marked by a large participation of believers in religious services and an increase in activities in tourist areas, our institution has intensified checking, paying increased attention to places of worship, accommodation establishments inside monasteries, tourist accommodation establishments as well as economic facilities in areas with high affluence," according to the IGSU official.
At the same time, he said that training sessions were organised for priests and clergy personnel on emergency evacuation procedures and the correct use of fire extinguishers. AGERPRES