Ilocos PNP secures roads, tourist sites for summer

By Myds Supnad

CAMP FLORENDO, San Fernando City, La Union—Ilocos regional police director Chief Supt. Franklin Jesus B. Bucayu recently ordered police in the region to augment road security, traffic management and preventive patrol operations in the four Region 1 provinces for Holy Week and summer.

Bucayu said that hundreds of policemen, including marshalls, have been deployed and are manning police assistance hubs and checkpoints in main thoroughfares and tourist destinations in Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte where visitors and local folks are expected.

“Our police personnel are now deployed and ready to assist the motorists and tourists coming in to our region for the Holy Week.

Assistance centers were also set up in every municipality and all police stations are on the round-the-clock duty.

Emergency response teams and motorized anti-street crime operatives were also activated,” Bucayu said.

He said coordination with stakeholders, local government units and non-government summer assistance organizations is being conducted to closely monitor, oversee and ensure said operation, dubbed “Implan Semana Santa/Sumvac 2012.”

“The yearly observance of Holy Week and summer vacation is a time when we expect heavy traffic jams in our thoroughfares, congestion in catholic churches during ‘visita Iglesia,’ commercial centers, shopping malls, public markets and other points of convergence. Hence, we need to step up our peace-keeping efforts to ensure the safety and security of the community,” he said.

“Even our beaches are expected to be full of local and foreign tourists, and we prepared for this by organizing and deploying Baywatch Teams to conduct beach patrol and other public safety services.”