Please attribute to Inspector Ben Offner, Area Prevention Manager, Auckland City Police.
Auckland City is a vibrant, lively and exciting place over the Summer period and police are encouraging revellers to have fun, enjoy their holiday but do it safely and responsibly. Operation Summer is a targeted police operation that focuses on preventing alcohol-related harm and public place violence in Auckland over Summer.
Central Auckland is a focal point for these incidents and based on historical trends, certain hotspots traditionally experience an increase in disorder over this time. Police are planning to deal proactively with the anticipated increase and we are also encouraging revellers to have fun, but stay safe.
The weekends immediately before Christmas and New Year’s Eve are especially busy in the central city and Christmas parties combined with the warm weather and increasing celebrations before the holidays can lead to high levels of intoxication. A high proportion of all public place assaults occur in the central city during this period, and we also know that 42% of this violence occurs between 2am-4am on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
Traditionally, Police have responded reactively to these situations however this year Operation Summer aims to proactively prevent these incidents before they occur. Police resources from three districts across Tamaki Makaurau will be patrolling the central city to keep revellers safe and urge members of the public to have fun, but take responsibility for their own actions and look after their friends.
“We encourage everyone to have a great time over the holiday period but also to do it responsibly and know when enough is enough,” said Inspector Ben Offner, Area Prevention Manager, Auckland City Police.
“We will be discouraging pre-loading of alcohol, which research tells us contributes to violence and disorder. It is also an offence for licensed premises to admit or have intoxicated persons on their premises, so we will be assisting them to comply with the law. Police will be actively identifying intoxicated people and prevent them entering drinking establishments and we will have a high visibility at known hotspots,” he said.
Some practical advice from Police on how to stay safe when you’re out and about over Summer:
• If your friends are drunk at the end of the night, look after them and walk away from any potential confrontation. Walk away and avoid confrontations and calm your friends down, it’s not worth the risk of becoming a victim.
• If you are going out to a pub, club or party make sure you plan ahead and plan how you are going to get home.
• Keep your drink close and don’t give anyone the opportunity to tamper with it. If you notice a change in colour or taste don’t drink it and if you start to feel drowsy tell a friend or someone you trust so they can look after you. Drink spiking is rare but it can happen and remember that water and fruit juice can also be spiked so be vigilant with all drinks.
• Travel home with your friends and only stay with people you know and trust.
• If you’re hosting a party, have fun but make sure it doesn’t get out of hand. Keep the invites to people you know and if you are serving young people under 18, you need express consent from their parents.
• If you’re out and about at night always keep to well-lit areas. Keep bags containing valuables, wallets, purses etc close to your body and keep your cell phone where you can reach it. Walk close to the curb and always walk facing the traffic.
We’re all looking forward to the Summer break so let’s work together to keep ourselves, our friends and our community safe.
ENDS
Monique Caddy/NZ Police