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Loddon HERALD Vol 4 No 7, THURSDAY FEBRUARY 29, 2024 ISSN 2653-1550
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COMMUNITY concern is rising that northern Loddon communities are without a permanent police presence.
Residents say police resources are stretched while one-member stations at Pyramid Hill, Serpentine and Boort are covered from other local towns. The Pyramid Hill station, empty since the former officer retired last year, now has police from Inglewood on secondment.
By CHRIS EARL
The vacancy is still to be advertised. It was not in last week’s Police Gazette and may not appear until later in the year. The Police Association claims “recent resource shortages and heightened levels of work-related injuries within policing have left some gaps”. Veteran Boort policeman Ray Stoman remains on sick leave and police from other Loddon stations continue to provide a lo-
Dot and Ken Hulands and Steve Brown stand outside the empty Serpentine police station .... they want “coppers back in town”. LH PHOTO
cal presence. Serpentine has remained empty since the officer was injured last year with people living near the police station and residence taking turns mowing front yards until last month. One of Serpentine resident Steve Brown, said on Friday: “There’s no police permanently in the northern half of the Loddon Shire. “We want police back in our towns. Around here, the whole town is not happy that there is not a station in use between Eaglehawk and Kerang.”
Mr Brown’s concerns were echoed by Dot and Ken Hulands. Mrs Hulands said she had witnessed two cars racing side-byside on the Loddon Valley Highway through town this month. And Mr Brown said: “We had a car go through on the Loddon Valley Highway the other Saturday night ... easily doing 200kmh. “At the end of the day, we need a copper in town.” Pyramid Hill resident Kel Stewart said there was apprehension in town about the lack of a permanent police presence. “We may
be a small town but we need our local police,” she said. Her concerns came in a week when bollards in Railway Avenue were damaged and thieves stole an external water pump connected to sporting change rooms at Mitchell Park. Murray Plains MP Peter Walsh said he was appalled communities from Bendigo to Kerang were being left without any permanent police presence around the busy Loddon Valley Highway.
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