The local police service in the seaside town of Knokke-Heist (West Flanders) will deploy additional police officers during the forthcoming weekend. With temperatures expected to be in the high 20s a large number of tourists, including many day trippers are expected to visit the upmarket resort.
Knokke-Heist will deploy more police officers during the forthcoming heatwave weekend
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With tropical temperatures forecast for the weekend police in Knokke-Heist are leaving nothing to chance. Hot sunny weather usually means large crowds at the seaside and the Knokke-Heist Local Police Service wants to be prepared for an influx of thousands of additional visitors during the forthcoming weekend.
Police Commissioner Steve Desmet told VRT News that “We are deploying additional officers and we have also requested support from the Federal Police”.
One of the things that the police will pay particular attention to is incoming and outgoing traffic flows. "When doing this, we will carry out targeted and very visible checks. We want to be present on the ground. Unauthorised parking will also be checked and sanctioned", Commissioner Desmet told VRT News.
The police know from experience that there is usually more trouble on hot days than at other times.
“We know from experience that on hot days our town welcomes a different crowd than normal. These are young people that come from the big cities in Belgium and from the north of France. They do not always respect our standards and our values. This is something we will be keeping an eye on."
One example of the “values and standards” that Knokke-Heist wishes to uphold is a ban on visitors walking around in town centre in swimsuits. "Those who do so anyway risk a fine. We can also issue fines for noise pollution", the police chief told VRT News.