Unusual task for policemen, prison warders

Members of the police Special Assignment Team and the Special Response Team of the Corradino prisons have been honing their abseiling skills by removing weeds from the bastions.

Police Inspector Kenneth Haber said they were clearing the weeds all the way from Fort St Elmo to Valletta Waterfront. They are assisted, where possible, by workers from the Public Cleansing Department.

The inspector said the men were being careful not to damage the bastions as far as possible, but said a chainsaw had to be used on one occasion where the growth was much more than weeds.

The SAG officers regularly train in different abseiling techniques since they may be called upon to perform rapid entry into buildings through doors and windows.

At the prisons, the response team also has to be ready to gain access into locked off or barricaded areas.