This year, the campaign started earlier and will continue until the last day of October “so that everything is prepared from Easter until summer”, says Mayor José Carlos Rolo, highlighting that it is a “unique initiative at a national level”. On the last day of March, the various teams met and took stock of the previous year of this action, in which the Municipality invested over one million euros.

According to the local council, the “Albufeira - Noite + Segura” is a programme that aims to reinforce the prevention of risky behaviour in the so-called "old town" part of the city and on Avenida Sá Carneiro – south, began on the first day of this month of April.

Credits: Supplied Image;

“This initiative is related to the increase in the number of tourists in the city and the need to focus on regulating and preventing certain behaviours in a city that reaches a peak of 500,000 people in August. Albufeira has grown in terms of tourist activity and, given the lack of resources from the Central Government, is developing this unique initiative at a national level,” the mayor added.

The initiative involves a multidisciplinary security and emergency team, made up of the National Republican Guard, Albufeira Volunteer Firefighters, Portuguese Red Cross, Municipal Civil Protection Service and Municipal Police, who provide surveillance in these areas of the city between 7pm and 6am.

Review

On March 31, this team met to take stock of last year's edition, which took place between July 22nd and October 31st. The security reinforcement meant a total investment of €1,254. 904.00 from the Municipality, divided between the costs of human resources and the acquisition of two ambulances for the Albufeira Volunteer Firefighters, an interactive space for Civil Protection, Requalification of the National Republican Guard Post in Olhos de Água and video surveillance cameras (investment of around 900 thousand euros), among others.

Credits: Supplied Image;

At this meeting, each entity presented a report on the actions carried out during the summer period of last year. During the “Albufeira – Night + Safe 2024” action, the Albufeira Volunteer Firefighters team carried out foot patrols in Praça dos Pescadores, Cais Herculano, Largo Eng.º Duarte Pacheco, Rua 5 de Outubro and Rua Cândidos dos Reis, among others, recording a total of 559 interventions, of which 49% were resolved on site without the need to activate emergency resources.

According to the council, the most frequent occurrences were falls, assaults, poisoning and sudden illness. As for the Portuguese Red Cross, the Albufeira – Silves Humanitarian Center carried out foot patrols on Avenida Sá Carneiro – south and registered a total of 647 occurrences, of which 12.67% were forwarded to the Albufeira Center, 4.02% to the Faro District Hospital and the rest, that is, 83.31%, resolved on site.

Of the total number of incidents, 86.49% involve people of foreign nationality, 77% of which are male and 23% female. The age group between 21 and 30 years old had the highest number of occurrences, followed by the age group of 31-40 years old. Around 89% of the incidents were found on public roads in the southern part of Avenida Sá Carneiro.

Most common occurrences

Alcohol poisoning led the type of occurrence (39%), followed by traumas - falls (23%), assaults (15%), wounds and abrasions (11%) and sudden illnesses (3%). The Municipal Civil Defense Department patrolled the aforementioned areas, personally informing tourists and delivering kits to commercial establishments, consisting of a book on rules, good conduct and good practices, leaflets and stickers.

This year, “Albufeira – Noite + Segura” will have a reinforcement of resources and agents between July 1st and September 30th in the aforementioned locations and meetings will be held with local entities and businesspeople from the areas of Tourism, Hotels, Catering and Nightlife, as well as with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Embassies of Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France, Spain and Germany.