SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 20 Apr. (EUROPE PRESS) –
The Local Security Board, held this Wednesday at the Santa Cruz de Tenerife City Hall, has addressed the exceptional celebration of the Carnival events during the month of June and has set up a device with more than 500 police officers, which will focus especially in the four days planned for the celebrations in the streets.
The mayor of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, José Manuel Bermúdez, highlighted “the enormous challenge that the organization of this Carnival entails, in all aspects, and which will undoubtedly set the tone for all this type of celebration in the Canary archipelago” .
For this reason, he said, “we have to be up to the task and the administrations are going to put all the means at our disposal so that joy and the traditional carnival spirit of the chicharreros prevail.”
The mayor announced that with the forecasts handled by the consistory, “it will be a massive celebration, obviously because of the dates on which it will be held, also because of the desire that many people have to have fun after this period of pandemic, and we have verified that those days people from all over the Canary Islands will come to Santa Cruz”.
Bermúdez also pointed out that, in parallel to the reinforcement of security, “a public transport device has been designed with notable increases in buses from the North and South, as well as urban service, adding streetcar operations and with the support of the work of taxis, to come to the party and return home public transport will be the best option”.
For his part, the sub-delegate of the Government, Javier Plata, in addition to highlighting the harmony and coordination of all the security forces and bodies before the next carnivals, emphasized that “given the scope and character of these festivities, the concentration of police work necessary , especially in the streets, forces us to put all available means at the service of Carnival security”.
Plata pointed out that, together with the National Police and Civil Guard on the island, “reinforcements will come from Gran Canaria and even aerial means and the work of specialized units will be added, both for the programming of events and on days of maximum fun in the city.
PERMANENT SERVICE OF THE CIVIL GUARD IN THE PORT
The sub-delegate also added that the Civil Guard, responsible for security in the port area, “is going to establish a permanent 24-hour service in the maritime terminals, during the four days of Carnival in the street, since an increase in services and frequencies of passenger transport shipping companies”.
The Traffic detachment of this body has also confirmed the carrying out of macro-controls in all possible access and exit routes from the city during these festive days.
Another of the measures adopted has to do with the expansion of the network of video surveillance cameras that are usually put into operation, provisionally, during carnivals.
“We are not going to spare any effort in terms of security, in fact, and although there are still two months to go, a work commission between the Local Police and the National Police will soon examine new locations and the necessary increase in this type of element. that have helped us so much to improve the police response to any incident,” said the mayor of Santacrucero.
Although throughout this security meeting other issues related to the imminent May festivities were addressed, the layout and distribution of the Carnival security areas, the necessary dimension of the Carnival Hospital device, the contribution of troops from the General Corps of the Canarian Police (CGPC); the specific and comprehensive devices for attention to minors and even the recovery of the so-called ‘Purple Points’ to detect, help and advise against any type of sexist aggression at parties.
In addition to all the available templates of the Local Police and the National Police during those days, security in the streets will be completed with the provisions of the Tenerife Firefighters Consortium and the work of Civil Protection, from the coordination center to the volunteer group itself.
BONFIRES OF SAN JUAN AND BURIAL OF THE SARDINE
An issue to take into account, during the day of June 23, will be the coincidence of the traditional bonfires of San Juan with the start of the Carnival and the popular ‘Burial of the Sardine’, which will force a redistribution of the troops.
Although a large part of the Local Security Board focused on the device for the Carnival, data on the main acts of the May Festivities were also reviewed, detailing the forecasts on the Ball of Magi and the most massive recitals, such as the one that will coincide with the ‘Day of the Canary Islands’.
Although the festive program contains different acts; the exhibition of flowers and plants; autochthonous sports fairs and exhibitions, in terms of security, the presence of a specific reinforcement of the Local Police materialized, adding some 23 members to the usual operation and a subgroup of the Prevention and Response Unit (UPR) of the National Police to the popular Ball of Magicians.
Also participating in the Local Security Board, along with the commanders of the different bodies and security forces, were the mayors of Citizen Security and Emergencies from Santa Cruz, Evelyn Alonso; from the Presidency and Festivities area, Alfonso Cabello; of Sustainability and Public Services, Carlos Tarife; and the head of Culture and Historical Heritage, Gladis de León.
THE TRANSPORTATION CHALLENGE
Along with security, another fundamental pillar of the Santacrucero carnival will be the public transport system.
The operations and security representatives of Metropolitano de Tenerife explained the device prepared for the festivities that, although it looks like similar ones from previous carnivals, involves a greater logistical and work effort.
In this way, it is intended to achieve an average frequency that will be around ten minutes at the height of the festivities, the end of the journey and the security closure in the Plaza de La Paz will also be reiterated and the service during daytime hours until the stop by Angel Guimera.
As in previous years, the National Police will accompany the trams on part of the routes.
Regarding Titsa, due to the concentration of the party, all the security personnel at the Transport Interchange will be reinforced, a specific island plan has also been evaluated to dimension the necessary services that cover the demand of the thousands of people who will come to Santa Cruz on those days from the north and south of the island, with 40% more frequencies.
