Police on skates and summer stroll

BRUSSELS Le Soir • Saturday, June 22, 2002 Leisure | A Belgian first for strolling through the city in total safety Police on skates and summer stroll ALAIN GÉRARD It is a way not to fall into routine. While doing sport and giving the police a more modern image that is closer to the people. Kristel is one of four policewomen who volunteered, along with nine other officers, for an original experiment: the setting up, during the summer, of a platoon of thirteen units on... skates! Their mission? To supervise a roller skating stroll which, from July 5 to August 30, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m., will allow Brussels residents to pace their city in a different way. The experience exists in Paris, London, Amsterdam or New York. It attracts thousands of fans every week. In Brussels, it's a first in Belgium. I had never skated before, continues Kristel, clad in black, helmeted, skates on her feet, the word "POLICE" stamped on her back. We had five weeks of intensive training. I am looking forward to starting. The "Brussels rollers" operation, free and open to all (1), will begin on Friday, July 5. And will continue every Friday until the end of August. On a route that will take participants from Place Poelaert to Saint-Géry, passing through Avenue Louise, the Woods and the Porte de Namur. All Brussels skaters expect a lot from this experience, confides Carl De Moncharline, at the origin of the idea. Hoping that the walk will allow a more in-depth reflection so that roller skating can be done in complete safety in the city. It is to meet this demand and supervise the summer walk that the City and police of the Brussels-Ixelles zone decided to train police officers on skates. If the initiative is successful, it could lead to the creation of patrols on skates. We are thinking about it, punctuates Roland Vanreusel, chief of staff. Especially since we will find these police officers on skates for the car-free day, the 20 km and at the Woods where, on Sundays, Brussels skaters meet. [Photo caption] During the summer, police on skates will supervise a stroll in town. An experiment that could lead to real patrols. Photo Jean-Louis Wertz.