This weekend the town of Balbriggan will play host to a major community safety weekend with a host of various activities planned for everyone. Full details, including a programme of events, are available from the Balbriggan info website at : http://www.balbriggan.info/Balbriggan_Community_Safety_Week_22_to-25_Sep11.shtml and also check out boards.ie for more detailed info: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055856230&page=9
Some of the highlights of the weekend include:
Thursday: a fun quiz in O’Dwyers GAA club from 8pm. The night will feature questions from many of the organisations taking place over the course of the weekend.
Friday: The weekly farmers market at the Square, Balbriggan will host stalls from the various emergency services and safety organisations with lots of info, advice and of course free goodies for all. Skerries Coast Guard team members will be on hand to answer any water safety questions or concerns you have.
Saturday: Balbriggan Garda station will be open for tours from 2 – 6pm, giving everyone the chance to take a look behind the scenes at the busy station. This is a family orientated event and there will be children’s activities and entertainment.
Sunday: From 1pm on Sunday, the Church carpark at Balbriggan will be transformed into a major safety roadshow. Skerries Coast Guard will be joined by their fellow volunteers from Howth Coast Guard to showcase the various Coast Guard search and rescue resources. This will give visitors the chance to take a hands on look at one of our high speed Patrol Boats, off road rescue vehicle, cliff rescue teams, shore rescue teams and of course a Coast Guard Sikorsky helicopter will perfom a aerobatical display.
The Coast Guard team will also have a host of water safety info and free goodies, so come early!
Marine Flare demonstrations and lifejacket clinics
At the Sunday roadshow, we will also be giving the public the chance to learn more about marine distress flares. This will include advice on the various types of flares available, which ones are right for your activity and hands on practice at firing them.
The Coast Guard crew will also be available to answer any questions you have about lifejackets, the regulations and laws on wearing them at sea, the various types and how to maintain them correctly.
Other highlights of the Sunday roadshow include: The Road Safety Authority’s driving simulator and the Audi A4 rollover simulator – experience in safety what a car rollover actually feels like and why seatbelts are so important. The Fire Brigade will perform a car crash rescue re-enactment at 3pm, showing how they can rescue crash victims from car wreckage. The Civil Defence will also be there with all their various crews and vehicles including offroad vehicles, Fire Brigade Applicnace and command unit.
The weekend is organised by the community policing forum (www.cpforum.ie) and is intended to improve the local cummunities’ safety awareness through the various events and initiatives taking place.