BRAZIL: Rio de Janeiro gears up for New Year's celebrations

Record ID: 805107

  • Title: BRAZIL: Rio de Janeiro gears up for New Year's celebrations
  • Date: 31st December 2009
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF SLIDESHOW
  • Embargoed: 15th January 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Brazil
  • Country: Brazil
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
  • Reuters ID: LVA7OXO9CLGXN7YDNR19I34Q8SNR
  • Story Text: Final arrangements are made for Rio de Janeiro's massive New Year's party at Copacabana beach.
    Hundreds of workers had a busy day in Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach on Wednesday (December 30) as they took care of the final arrangements for the city's massive New Year's Eve bash.
    Four stages are being set on the two-and-a-half mile beach to host concerts from popular bands and samba schools on the turn of the year. The biggest one stands in front of the world-famous Copacabana Palace Hotel, where hundreds of tourists are already lodged.
    Officials expect nearly 2 million revelers dressed in traditional white at Rio's Atlantic coast to watch the 20-minute fireworks show.
    The famous New Year party draws thousands of tourists every year and many have high expectations.
    "No, there is nothing like Rio de Janeiro. No other city has one (New Year's party) like here, only at Rio de Janeiro," said the Brazilian tourist Antonio Maia.
    According to Rio's Hotels Association, 95 percent of the 28,000 hotel rooms are already occupied, pointing an increase from last year's rate.
    "It's sad, we decided (to come to Rio) on the last minute - me, my father and my mother - and we only got reservations until December 30. After that, everything is packed, there is no place to stay," said Brazilian tourist Patricia Gordim.
    Government authorities said the hotels registered a record occupation, with 11 percent up from last year in the same period.
    To boost security at New Year's Eve, officials say 11,700 officers will patrol streets, bus stations and subway stops.
    Police will also erect 30 surveillance towers on Copacabana beach, where 1,473 officers will be on duty.
    This year, police will have buses with cameras to keep an eye on the crowd. Inside the vehicles, officers have access to closed-circuit video footage and can control cameras with Israeli top-technology to observe the beach.
    "They (police buses at Copacabana beach) have access to the closed-circuit video from the transportation authority, they can control and see the cameras from the military police and on the top of them there are also cameras with an Israeli technology that are being tested for the first time. They (cameras) can see the whole beach and will help at the visual control so we can identify any kind of disturb that may happen at the beach," said Major Fabio Cajueiro at a news conference.
    Some 24 tonnes of explosives distributed among rafts along the beach will mark the height of the night in a globally televised fireworks display.
    Authorities say Rio's victory to host the 2016 Olympics boosted tourism activities and now some 620,000 tourists are expected to visit the city until February when the Carnival festivities begin.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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