December 27, 2022, 04:00 PM
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The Singapore Police Force (SPF) expects large crowds to join in the New Year's Eve festivities at the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown (MBSC) on Dec. 31, 2022.
As such, SPF will be taking various safety and security arrangements in order to ensure the safety of the public and manage crowd levels during this period, it shared in a press release on Dec. 27.
Enhanced Mobicam and SPF drones
For one, SPF will be utilising an "Enhanced Mobicam" – static police cameras with incorporated crowd management features – to monitor crowd sizes, especially at popular crowd congregation areas.
Equipped with blinkers, speakers, and electronic signage, the Enhanced Mobicam will enable officers at the Police Command Centre to issue audio and visual advisories to the public if needed.
Image via SPF
SPF drones will also be deployed to enhance operational effectiveness, shared SPF.
Image via SPF
Equipped with thermal and visual sensors, the drones will allow officers to derive crowd insights regarding crowd size, flow and density during the MBSC 2023.
The drones will have speakers to assist SPF with crowd control, by broadcasting public safety messages, as well as the instructions the general public should abide by during a contingency.
Image via SPF
The drones will only be flown over water and will also be operated by specially trained police officers, added SPF.
Image via SPF
Image via SPF
Image via SPF
Crowd@Marina Bay live map
To prevent overcrowding, police officers and auxiliary police officers will be regulating the number of people who can enter the Marina Bay area.
These include locations such as The Promontory, One Fullerton/Merlion Park, Esplanade Park, Esplanade Waterfront Promenade, Marina Bay Sands Waterfront Promenade, as well as other areas in the vicinity.
When the capacity of these areas reaches the planned safety thresholds, they will be closed to ensure the safety of members of the public.
Members of the public are encouraged to check out the Crowd@MarinaBay map to view crowd levels in real-time and area closures on the day itself.
Areas that have reached safe capacity limits will be closed. A warning icon will appear above areas that are closed. When closed, the area will also be reflected in red (as shown). Members of the public will be allowed to exit from these closed areas, however, no re- entry will be permitted. Image via SPF.
On Dec. 31, recommended walking paths from MRT stations to the areas around Marina Bay will also be shown. These paths will be updated whenever an area is closed. Image via SPF.
The map will be live from 6pm on Dec. 31, 2022, to 1:30am on Jan. 1, 2023.
A map of the Marina Bay area as of Dec. 27. Image via Crowd@Marina Bay website.
A map of possible area closures provided by SPF. Image via SPF.
According to the SPF, MRT stations including City Hall, Raffles Place and Bayfront are also expected to be very crowded.
Members of the public are thereby encouraged to use other nearby MRT stations, such as Esplanade, Downtown, and Marina Bay instead.
SPF added that officers from the Special Operations Command, Protective Security Command, Public Transport Security Command, Police Coast Guard, Traffic Police, Emergency Response Teams and Aerial Response Team will also be deployed alongside officers from the land divisions, to conduct patrols and for swift response to public security incidents.
To view the Crowd@Marina Bay map, you can click here or scan this QR code:
Image via SPF
Top images via SPF
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