Canterbury Police want everyone to have a safe and enjoyable Cup and Show Week and urge the public to ‘think safety first’ before you head to and while you’re at the races, the A&P Show or parties at home or at licensed premises. When you leave your home/car make sure valuables are not on display and doors are locked to deter opportunistic burglaries.
Cup and Show Week is traditionally one of the busiest of the year for Police as people from around the country congregate in the city to take part in this annual week of celebrations.
Inspector Peter Cooper, Canterbury Police’s Deployment Manager, says “Our focus is to help ensure the week is safe and enjoyable for everyone. There will be a visible Police presence at events and locations across the city and additional staff will be working to cope with the busy schedule of races, events and the expected number of visitors to the City”
“We want everyone to have fun next week but our advice would be to not take your celebrations too far. Alcohol is a significant contributor in a third of all crime reported annually in New Zealand and Police will be targeting drink driving and focussing on preventing alcohol-related disorder. Our advice to those our celebrating this week is to plan your days and nights, be sensible with alcohol and factor in the use of sober drivers, public transport or taxis in your plan.”
Police will be actively enforcing liquor bans and anyone caught breaching the bans will be arrested. An additional liquor ban will also be in place from 9am to 10pm in the streets surrounding Addington Raceway on NZ Trotting Cup Day, Tuesday 11 November 2014.
Crowded places can also provide the ideal cover for someone to steal your bag or credit card(s). If you lose your bag or credit card report it to your bank straight away so they can deactivate your card(s) and then report the loss to Police. Prevention is always best so keep bags with you at all times, always shield your PIN from other people and don’t give your card or PIN to anyone else.
Inspector Cooper explains “Police receive and respond to almost the same number of callouts as they do on a typical Saturday night, which is typically 20% higher than on an average Tuesday 24 hour period.
Last year recorded offenses on Cup Day were significantly down when compared to previous years. Alcohol and traffic related offending continue to feature in callouts.
“Unfortunately opportunistic burglars also see Cup and Show Week as a busy time so our advice is to keep your home, motel room or car doors and windows securely locked at all times and keep valuables out of sight.” says Inspector Cooper.
Canterbury Police checkpoints will operate throughout the week, particularly in the evenings, and young drivers need to be aware that the zero alcohol limit for drivers under 20 years old will be strictly enforced.
Help us to help you have a safe and enjoyable cup and show week. Call *555 from your mobile to report erratic or dangerous driving.
Always dial 111 in an emergency.
ENDS
Issued by: Lisa-Marie Brooks, District Communications Manager, Canterbury Police District. Mobile: 021 942 404