Otago students drinking less and causing fewer issues over O-Week
From reporter Hamish McNeilly:
Less broken glass, a handful of arrests and a solitary couch fire: police have praised Otago students for improved behaviour over Orientation Week.
Sergeant Steve Jones wants to give "credit where credit is due" after thousands of students who returned for Flo Week (the flatting Orientation Week), and the following Orientation Week, showing a marked improvement in behaviour, he said.
The change came after some in the community who always gave students a "bad rap" over any anti-social behaviour, such as broken glass.
"It is definitely getting better," Jones said.
The anti-social element was a very small percentage of the community itself, and ‘’certainly a far cry from what we’ve seen in previous years,’’ he said.
Some of those arrested in the student quarter were not students, and came from outside the city.
That was the case in one of the more high profile incidents, which involved 15 Christchurch men who burst into a Leith St Flat and assaulted four flat mates.
Meanwhile, a proactive approach to bottle stores in the student quarter resulted in more canned products sold compared to glass bottles, which led to less glass on the street, Jones said.
And not all students were drinking, he said.
"We are seeing a new cohort of young people making more conscious and better educated decisions around alcohol, and we have a sober curious community coming through, who are going for zero alcohol options," Jones said.
There were only two reported case of gross intoxication in the student quarter over that period, with one of those a drug overdose.
What was also proving to be beneficial in reducing harm was students registering their parties on the Good One Party Register, which came with police offering advice to organisers.
It was difficult to determine if this was a long-term trend, given Covid had caused restrictions on large gatherings, however Jones was optimistic.
"I think we are following a trajectory which has been influenced by the partnerships."
That included emergency services, Otago University, and the students’ association working on student safety but still allowing "students to be students", he said.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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62.1% Summer
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36.4% Winter
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1.5% Other - I'll share below
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
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