Coastal expats in Yucatán get a tour of police facilities, technology

Expats living on the Yucatán coast get a tour of SSP facilities. Photo: Courtesy

Mérida, Yucatán — Canadian and American citizens residing in coastal Yucatán got an inside look at the state Police Intelligence and Monitoring Unit (UMIPOL).

They observed the SSP’s video surveillance and radio communications systems, as well as the 911 control center. The modern technology was “like the best in Canada and the United States,” one visitor asserted.

The 911 center answers distress calls of all kinds, and can respond in Spanish, English and Maya.

Permanent channels of communication and coordination have been established with the local population, both locals and expats, commented Commander Jorge Armando Albert Camargo, operational director of the Integral Centers of Public Security.

Albert Camargo said that the state police conducts frequent meetings with residents, social organizations, fishermen, entrepreneurs and municipal authorities.

The group that visited the police facilities on Thursday are liaisons of their respective consulates.

Speranza Avram, a U.S. citizen who has lived in the port of Progreso for four years, said she was impressed by the UMIPOL facilities. She said she feels safe when she sees patrols and checkpoints. For the foreign community, the most important thing is safety and living without fear, she said.

Floridian Robert Rentz, who has lived in Chuburná Puerto for seven years, said that in Yucatán, he feels very safe. He agreed that as a foreigner, the important thing is security.

He also expressed surprise at the level of technology used by police officials.

Canadian Karen Cloutier, who has lived in Chicxulub Puerto for 11 years, worked with a 911 system in British Columbia, and compared Yucatán’s system favorably with the best of the U.S. and Canada.

Cloutier reported calling 911 once, and getting a swift response from state police. Her message to the police: “Keep doing a good job.”

Olivia Bakker Gómez, liaison of the Coordination of International Affairs of the Office of the Governor of the State, participated in the tour, as did UMIPOL Commander Manuel Martínez Estrella.

Source: SSP Press Release

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