Perhaps it's the danger inherent in a thousand people, many of whom will be heavily inebriated, running around a 60-foot inferno, or maybe it's the inconvenience of a handful of them, also heavily inebriated, rushing the football field at halftime; whatever the reason, Safety and Security will be taking extra precautions this Homecoming weekend.
A combination of Homecoming's bonfire, football game, influx of alumni and multitude of social gatherings involving alcohol account for the weekend's greater need for Safety and Security, College Proctor Harry Kinne said, whether the officers are needed for alcohol related-instances or a simple medical call.
Because of this, Kinne stated that Safety and Security will increase the number of patrols on campus as well as the number of officers working throughout the weekend.
"It's clearly one of our busier weekends of the year," Kinne said. "It's probably busier than Winter Carnival or Green Key, but again, some of that has to do with the specific events like the bonfire."
Precautions for the bonfire include the presence of nearly every Safety and Security officer on the Green, in addition to the hiring of approximately 30 police officers from Hanover and other surrounding areas as well as another 10 guards from Green Mountain Security, a Putney, Vt.-based security company.
Kinne estimates that there will be about 50 people on the Green handling security for the bonfire, but, "when you have 5,000 to 10,000 people on the Green, it doesn't really seem like that much."
Despite the class of 2010's relatively high number of alcohol-related incidents for their short time on campus, as reported by the Office of Undergraduate Judicial Affairs, Kinne stated that no special precautions have been made for the freshman sweep, or any event scheduled for this weekend.
Kinne did note that Safety and Security will maintain a high visibility of both bike and walking officers during the sweep, which should discourage any open acts of drunkenness.
"We've also talked to the undergraduate advisors and encouraged them to help us in any way by calling in people who need assistance," he said.
Hanover Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone said that Hanover Police would not increase patrols for the weekend apart from its presence at the freshman sweep, the bonfire and the football game, where officers will be on the lookout for any members of the Class of 2010 who attempt to rush the field.
Giaccone stated that arrests over Homecoming are a mix of freshmen and upperclassmen, but that most students arrested are under 21 years old. Similar patrols last year yielded 13 alcohol-related student arrests.
Kinne also hoped that the letter students receive before every Homecoming reminding them to be responsible in their actions will dissuade students from behaving irresponsibly.
"This is a great weekend," he said. "It's a festive weekend, and everyone should really enjoy it. We want them to enjoy it in a safe way."
Kinne reiterated his advice from last year to participants in the weekend activities: "Everything in moderation."
