Slideshow & Video: Police Vehicle Convoy
[Updated] As part of their celebrations of 135 years of policing in our community, the Bermuda Police Service held a police convoy display today [Oct 1] which involved over 28 vehicles from the police fleet traveling island wide.
The convoy departed from the former PTB Bus Depot on Beacon Hill in Sandys at 10.00am, and headed all the way to St. George’s before making their way back to Hamilton.
According to the Police website, Bermuda’s first full time Police Force was established exactly 135 years ago today, and had a total of 10 full time officers.
“In August 1879 the Legislature passed The Police Establishment Act, 1879 and on October 1st that year, Bermuda’s first full time Police Force came into being,” the site says.
“The wording of the Act, reflecting the concerns of the Chief Justice, began ‘Whereas the present police force is deficient in organization, discipline and efficiency and it is expedient to reorganize it under more efficient management:’
“The new Force had an establishment of ten full time men and an annual budget of six hundred pounds.”
Update: A police spokesperson said, “In celebration of 135 years of policing in Bermuda and the official date of the establishment of The Bermuda Police Service [October 1st 1879], the BPS police convoy display took place today, consisting of over 31 vehicles representing a cross section of vehicles in the police fleet.
“This dynamic visual display was the Service’s way of saying thank you to the community for the support over the years. It is our wish that the convoy will create an iconic memory in the hearts and minds of Bermuda’s youth, establish positive relationships and plant a seed that one day may inspire them to join the BPS.
“The convoy started in Sandys and made its way all the way to St. George’s and back into the City, passing over 30 schools – nursery schools, primary, middle, high schools and most private schools. The convoy ended at City Hall where the police vehicles where on display until 3pm.
“One of the most significant aspects of the convoy was the relationship that was established with Noble Auto and students from the public and private high schools.
“This opportunity allowed the skilled and highly trained mechanical staff from the Bermuda Police Service and the trained professionals of Noble Auto with the assistance of various high school students to use a creative and innovative work style and techniques to ultimately create never before seen police vehicle concepts as well as help bring back the much anticipated police bus.”
“We would like to say a special thank you to the Managing Director of Noble Auto and all of his staff as well as the students that donated their countless hours of work and expertise to this project. We would also like to thank the staff of PTB who assisted in the refurbishment of the police bus.”
Commissioner Michael DeSilva states: “It was great to watch the police convoy drive past Hamilton Police Station today as our officers showcased some of our vehicles. The bright faces on the children from Onion Patch Academy lined up at St. Paul’s AME church made my day. I hope the convoy drummed up some interest for our Gymkhana being held this Saturday at the Police Field in Prospect.
“It was also a huge honor to share the experience with some of our past police and Ministerial colleagues, including former Ministers Col. David Burch and Terry Lister, former Commissioner George Jackson and Superintendent Larry Smith, former Commandants Hugh Lewis and Jerry Robinson and current Secretary for National Security, Maj. Marc Telemaque.
“It is equally our honour to work with our community partners, especially those that find positive pursuits for our youth. This is something that the Bermuda Police Service remains committed to and I would like to thank the Cedarbridge Academy administration as well as the staff at Noble Auto for partnering with the Bermuda Police Service. We believe that the ultimate beneficiaries of such collaboration will be Bermuda’s youth.”
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Passed them on Palmetto Road. Looked cool.
Hey I thought dark tinted windows were illegal !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That’s a good use of their time . . .
What is up with the hot-rod blue wheeled police vehicle? What’s it used for? I saw the parade and was amazed to see that vehicle!
The blue mazda was a Cedarbridge class project and the cars are donated to the school for the design and tech mechanic shop. good job kids!!! Teaching the young Bermudians a good field of expertise.
One thing BPS can say ,they have some of the best cars on the roads!!Benz, landcrusier,Audi, and that grey and red mazada!!like that paint scheme and really caught my eyes.. Hot wheels..All the best BPS as we know you have a hard job to do ..
Slow crime day?
No doubt about it, the BPS have all the latest & greatest toys to do the job. So, why do we have the mayhem?
The killer is the Winnebago RV as a mobile command vehicle. Why such an expensive vehicle? Base cost for one of those things, fitted out as a RV is going to be $150,000 to $200,000. I’ll give them one thing, the model they have is one of the cheaper ones. Still…Why?
They could have bought a travel trailer, with slideouts making it much roomier, at a base cost as a RV for $20,000 to $30,000 & put all the same police stuff in that. They could then move it with any of their vehicles having a tow ball on the back.
Like the boats, all kinds of stupid money spent for something way over the top.
Most of your comments I have a tendency to agree with.
But Triangle this time your talking sheet as can be sen by the dislikes.
I disliked it also.
Get real dood.
I suppose the first comment is abit unfair. My apologies.
I stand firm on what I know about. The RV & the boats, specifically the one that spends all of its time next to the dock. Just because it does not move does not mean it does not generate costs.
Is it me or is this ‘display’ a display of tax dollars gone to waste. Unnecessary use of man power and gas. If anything line them up on a field and let people come and view them. Why interrupt traffic etc. I don’t get it. Can someone help me figure it out
I’m sure there are lots of things in life you don’t understand but the police have a budget and did budget for this event. The police have sacrificed lots of overtime and man power and yet still do an effective job of policing the island. Sure, it looks like a waste of money but i’m sure you can find many govt departments that are a total waste of tax dollars and produce nothing, complain about them.
@ Raw Onion:
So your saying, because you’re on budget with tax paying dollars, its ok to blow it up in smoke? The Government is talking out of both side of its mouth saying we don’t have the $$$ for this and that already… If you look at every four wheel vehicle in that parade all have their A/C’s on except one car. I also say its a waste of fuel…
If its a case of having extra money to do stuff with as you suggest, then their budget going forward should be cut and that money be put into another pot that needs it.
ummm…ok , so…where does the black mazda come into policing..? nitro racer to the rescue!…hahaha…nice ride tho..
The nitrous don’t work… Do dome research before you blab off
The Loserbago was a used model from another Police jurisdiction. It didnt cost much at all.
What a waste of taxpayer’s money.
I’m pretty sure the black ‘interceptor’ is to get people to pull over because they are laughing. Hope they don’t blow the welds on the intake lamo. Good thing they got that spoiler on to hold it to the road. Might need a little more of a wicker to keep the wheels on the pavement lol
The black police concept car included students from Cedarbridge in the making of this car n that’s what should make the front of the paper instead of the bad things that young people are doing all the time.
You are missing the point altogether. Yes, we all know that we cannot and will not have cars like that in Bermuda. My son was one of the students that helped with the assembly of this car and he had the time of his life. They had so much fun making this car. It showed teamwork and it also showed that whatever you want to achieve in life, it is possible it you set your mind to it. You can accomplish anything, especially when you have a positive influence and guidance in your life. Noble Auto Staff, Cedarbridge Students and BPS keep up the good work on these projects/creations. I look forward to your next one.
Thank you! Bernews can you provide a bit of background on the outstanding work by Cedarbridge students, for the trolls and naysayers.
@not*TT. Good point, we added in 2 links above to stories we have on it, and also for anyone reading, you can click here for some background on the programme.
Great work to the students at Cedarbridge for the countless hours they put in on Mazda. Well done!
Good night , when I heard the noise from the police vehicle, I sat down on my couch & said Oh no not another shooting. A little later Sherri Simmons said they were in Warwick & she explain what the police where doing. I had a sad & happy moment.
go back to bed…
I guess the Mazda is just in case the Joker, Penguin or Catwoman invade Bermuda.
Who masterminded this useless display? All those police are getting paid (at least 31) for the day driving all over the island burning government gas. This wide array of vehicles is only some of the present fleet, and while I’m sure that some enjoyed seeing this display, in a time when we are suffering critical issues with the economy spending like this makes no sense.
And how the bps escapes the same type of criticism that all other gov. departments get (lazy, overpaid, over staffed, ingrates) is ridiculous! Them and the politicians.
Whoevers party is in all the voters feign confidence in their every word and action, even when what they are doing is clearly stupid. It is a consequence of having voted these people in as your representative. You have no voice as you have chosen your representative to speak for you, leaving no option but towing the party line.
Would be nice if some of these resources were used in fighting crime.
What utter nonsense. The vast majority of the Police budget is spent on fighting crime and dealing with road accidents which cause more deaths and injuries than all the murders combined.
And as for your representatives, they can stand up and complain about this convoy but I guarantee they won’t for a darned good reason. Each and every politician knows that we need to support our Police Service in these difficult times – and now more than ever. And so do the vast majority of our population.
Actually many of us put on a uniform and did this on our day off without pay.
The black car is not a police vehicle it was a write off vehicle that had been fixed up by Noble Auto and CBA students as their vision of what futuristic police vehicles would look like. There were several community partners that sponsored the project. And if people think that police parading the vehicles across the island was a waste of time so be it.
The goal was to do something special for the community and mostly for kids. Those kids were over the moon with joy about the parade. A memory that will probably be etched in their minds forever. They saw a positive side of the police rather than the negative that they hear adults speak of. People need to stop with all the negativity.
FYI the bus was donated rust bucket that was brought back to life by Noble Auto as well. This bus will be used to go to schools and have police interact with kids just like the good ole’ days. The command centre is over ten years old and is maintained regularly. It serves as a police station on wheels for large events or major incidents that require officers to stay on scene. The audi and the benz are second hand police specials that in total cost the government less money than it would cost to purchase one brand new hyundai.
Creating a positive image of police for the kids and getting them excited about the fancy bikes and cars is far better than having the same aged kids glorifying the thugs that drive fancy bikes and cars. So think of whatever money spent out as a future investment. Or do you prefer to have our youth think the only way you can be cool and drive cool vehicles is to be a thug.
From what I saw and understood the main purpose of this Police convoy was to travel from one end of the Island to the other, passing all of our schools so that children and young people could come out and see all these police vehicles of every description, including the brilliant car put together by students at Cedarbridge Academy. And adults could see what their tax dollars have paid for.
From my vantage point all those thousands of kids were all excited and loved having the Police put on a “display” just for them. For those who whine and complain about the cost – this PR for the Police was PRICELESS!
In that case maybe the department of enviromental protectin and w&e should parade all their vehicles, ie trucks, tractors, lawnmowers, etc.. around the island so we can see where our tax payer dollars have bought us. This too would be priceless.
Also I bet the vast majority of the police budget is used paying the over inflated wage/benifit programme and then vehicles and fancy equipment they even had some left over for noble auto to “pimp my ride”
I have no representative so I will continue to speak for myself, regardless of whatever anyone else thinks.
You can return to towing the line.
And I for one have had “more than enough” from more than enough! You are clearly not and probably never have been nor ever will be a supporter of the Police Service. I know who I would call if ever I get into an accident, if I’m the victim of a crime – and if I ever have information about a crime that’s been or is going to be committed.
Well said Common Sense…. good PR and it is great to see the Police in the community. But more to the point. if this display – which was clearly aimed at getting school students’ attention – gets even a few more Bermudians interested in a career in the Police service then the display was worth every penny spent.
I thought we had too many gov. employees, did the plp bloat gov. departments or not? These guys are not only hiring they are recruiting for the future as well.
I could understand a big event like this being thrown for 100 yrs but 135? I don’t get it…or is this now going to be an annual expenditure?
Maybe if we were not 2b in debt I could see it, how is this helping our flailing economy? It’s not.
Nuff said.
Common Sense, you have common sense…i can’t say that about to many others.
Didn’t realize that black car was a project with the kids. That’s a pretty cool deal if so. The car isn’t my cup of tea, but that’s what makes building cars so much fun. You have a ton of different ways to express yourself.
That mazda is a hot ride! I like the new bikes too!
It’s kind of shocking to see police motorcyclists doing high fives with the crowds they’re riding past. I get the cool and PR factors, but this really is a terrible message being sent from what are supposed to be the road safety professionals.
Don’t get too bent out of shape , now .
At least they weren’t overtaking on the inside at 100kmh and almost taking innocent people off of their bikes whilst doing it… like I see multiple times daily.
That , or drive by shootings ,eh ?
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