Dour Festival: Behind the scenes of the police system (PHOTOS + VIDEO)

Every day, more than 200 police officers are mobilized on the festival.

Road checks, searches at entrances, plainclothes policemen, use of a helicopter, … The police device that frames the festival of Dour is impressive. Over the five days of the festival, no less than 1,000 police officers are mobilized, nearly 200 each day.

This Thursday morning, we followed a team of the Boraine police who carried out road checks on the axes near the festival. But the police are also present at the entries of the site. On the esplanade that connects the entrance to the campsite, a dozen men in civilian clothes watch over the grain. "This is the wabadtraat, literally the cleaning street" explains Patrice Degobert, police chief of the Hauts-Pays.

Festival-goers in possession of narcotics are intercepted by these plainclothes agents. "These police officers identify suspicious behavior, carry out a first search and, if necessary, take the festival-goers to arranged premises just next to the entrance. They are then sent to a process of search, interrogation, presentation to the magistrate and possibly product badysis.

Present on the spot, the deputy prosecutor of the King of Mons can speed up the procedure. " Between the dogs, the gantry checks and the more discreet devices, there are quite a few people who are brought back to my office" tells the magistrate Mr. Ruth . "There is everything: drug use and the deal, and there are all the drugs: ecstasy, cannabis, cocaine, speed, ketamine, and so on. Some people are therefore arrested and risk more serious consequences, depending on the amount of drug found and their criminal record.

The police are also present on the car parks with mobile elements that can intercept suspicious persons. In addition to this, a dozen agents serve as support for the caretaking service, which carries out the traditional search under the portico of entrance to the festival. "We intervene in case of overflow" specifies the commissioner Degobert. "On the site of the festival, we intervene if necessary. The organizers can call us.

All this device is the result of a close collaboration between the Hauts-Pays police zone, the other zones (boraine, Mons-Quévy, La Louvière, Haute Senne, etc.) and the federal police. "These are months of preparation" underlines Patrice Degobert who also appealed to the support of a helicopter. " The helicopter is used for overviews of certain situations. Example: arrivals and departures of festival-goers. This allows you to have control over the traffic.

The first police report (Wednesday and Thursday morning) reports 35,0000 festival-goers present. Roadside checks enabled, thanks to the support of the Boraine police zone and the customs to control 130 vehicles, resulting in 20 VPs of driving under influence and 16 Customs VPs, a seizure of 300 g of narcotics of various types. , 4,500 euros of transaction and 12,000 euros of taxation. According to the red cross, 17 people were evacuated to hospitals in the region on 433 interventions, only one urgent.