Big Olympic security operation in place (News Feature)

By Andreas Schirmer Feb 4, 2010, 11:08 GMT

Vancouver - Canada has put together its biggest peacetime security operation for the Vancouver Olympics in the host city and surrounding venues.

Organizers are taking nothing for granted even though there is no direct threat against the February 12-28 Games and US president Barack Obama has decided not to attend the opening ceremony.

Almost 16,000 police officers, soldiers and private guards are to make sure that the 2,500 athletes, 3,000 coaches and officials, 11,000 media and 350,000 visitors will be safe at the Games.

With little more than a week left until the opening ceremony, streets have been closed, security perimeters established, the Navy are patrolling the waterways, soldiers on skis are at the venues, and sniffer dogs present to detect dangerous substances.

Helicopters are patrolling the skies, 100 remote-controlled cameras are keeping an eye on the Vancouver streets and party zones, and a no-fly zone has been established around the athletes' villages in Vancouver and Whistler.

Olympic protests are allowed, but are also restricted to certain areas.

'There is no threat to the Olympic Games,' security chief Bud Mercer, a commissioner from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, told a media briefing on Wednesday.

However, Mercer also said that a plan B was in place, to be activated in the case of a threat.

Such a scenario with additional measures and personnel would likely further inflate the security budget of some 900 million Canadian dollars (850 million US dollars), based on a medium threat level.

The security operation was planned as soon as Vancouver was elected Olympic host in 2003.

While various measures are already being taken, the first big test will be the opening ceremony on February 12 which some 40 foreign dignitaries are expected to attend.

Mercer said that Obama's presence would have made the operation 'more complex' and that his absence eases concerns. The White House is sending vice-president Joe Biden to the ceremony.

A gang crackdown also occurred ahead of the Games, with police saying Wednesday they arrested 14 people on drug and weapons charges. They included a prominent leader who was due to appear in court later Thursday.

Mayor Gregor Robertson said the timing of the arrests shortly before the world arrives for the Games was good, but that the investigation against the gang members had been ongoing for years.