Revellers this Christmas and New Year were generally in good spirits, police have said. Requirements on the force during the festive period were as expected and the resources in place were adequate to manage the demand for everyday services as well as those deployed to the Pier Road tragedy.

Between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day police responded to 49 emergency 999 calls, dealt with 61 concerns for welfare/safety situations, made 28 arrests and responded to 297 matters that required police attention.

Police officers have been working 12 hour shifts since the tragedy in Pier Road and throughout the festive period.

Chief Inspector Mark Hafey praised staff for their hard work over the Christmas period, saying: “Officers have gone above and beyond these last few weeks and have dealt with everything that’s come their way. Shift patterns changed quickly to accommodate the major incident at Pier Road as well as ensuring Islanders could rely on policing services. This Christmas, more than any other, has been challenging, but everyone has just got on with the job in hand and for that we as an organisation are extremely thankful and proud of all of our staff.”