The onset of a world-wide pandemic has impacted almost every aspect of our lives and has caused a lot of concern, fear, and anxiety in our communities.
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But from a fundamental policing point of view nothing has changed - the primary focus of police in the Wimmera Division remains on ensuring the safety of our communities.
We are still here.
We still care.
We are still taking proactive steps to prevent crime and ensure community safety. We will continue to respond whenever we are required.
But we have certainly had to adapt - and adapt quickly - on two fronts.
Firstly, we have been challenged to rapidly rethink what 'community safety' means in the face of the microscopic threat that is COVID-19.
As a result, we have had to adapt to a new operational priority to support the Directions of the Chief Health Officer.
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Our units are now ensuring your safety by doing spot checks of people who are required to self-isolate; checks of businesses who are subject to mandated closure; and ensuring compliance with restrictions around social gatherings.
We have found that the vast majority of the community are complying with the directions.
Unfortunately there have been a small number of occasions where we have had to enforce these measures through the issue of steep fines to people who refuse to take this threat seriously.
Secondly, we have had to review our daily practices and take steps to ensure the wellbeing and safety of our members.
We have had to critically examine almost every activity we do from working on shared computers and the issue and return of our operational equipment, to how we continue to engage with vulnerable people in our community and enforce unacceptable driver behaviour on our roads.
We have been able to do this using well-practiced leadership and crisis management responses.
We have found that the vast majority of the community are complying with the directions.
We have been able to do this through engaging with and supporting our key emergency service and agency partners. We have been able to do this through the commitment and resilience of our members.
Like every other 'best practice' policing response, we have been able to do this because we have the cooperation and assistance of you - the 60,000+ people that live in the many communities across the Wimmera Division.
To continue supporting us, we ask that you maintain an awareness of the Directions issued by the Chief Health Officer here: https://www.dhhs.vic.gov.au/coronavirus.
We also ask you to follow our local Eyewatch pages: Eyewatch - Northern Grampians Police Service Area and Eyewatch - Horsham Police Service Area.
If you see something unusual or think that you've identified a breach of the Chief Health Officer Directions, please contact the Police Assistance Line on 131 444 and we will investigate.
As a community we will get through this together and your police will be there to support you throughout.
Acting Superintendent Paul Bertoncello - Wimmera Division
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