Recent terror attacks in Europe and elsewhere have prompted summertime event organisers and cities in Finland to pay special attention to their security measures.
The popular Tall Ships Races in Kotka is one event whose security will be tightened in cooperation with a security firm and authorities.
"We are paying close attention to world events and have increased our security resources," says the marine event's programme chief Tiina Salonen. "We've looked at the number of security personnel on hand and assessed possible threats in line with the global situation."
Salonen would not discuss specifics of the event's security protocols, though she says the race will result in closing certain streets in the city of Kotka for ease of passage, which, she says i a common procedure.
Police: "Not likely"
The frequency of terror attacks around the globe has affected the National Bureau of Investigation's projections of the likelihood of an attack on Finnish soil – but no official warnings are in place.
"The risk of individual attacks has risen slightly, but I do not consider it likely that any domestic events will be targeted in the same way as abroad," National Police Board chief inspector Vesa Pihajoki says. "Organisers are in charge of security, but police are close at hand if help is needed."
Pihajoki says that security levels at events in Finland this year will be the same as in recent years.
"The dangers and risks of Finnish crowd events tend traditionally to include mainly small injuries, seizures, alcohol-related violence and petty crimes like theft," he says.
Prevention key
Over the weekend German police interrupted a rock concert in Nürburgring due to a concrete terror threat, and Pihajoki says that Finnish police would react similarly in such a situation. He said Finnish police could in some scenarios secure a public event even if a direct threat was not visibly imminent.
"Police mainly work in preventing bad things from happening. Vehicles have been used as weapons lately and traffic measures will reflect that with speed bumps and the like," says Pihajoki.
The chief inspector says that people can rest assured that they can attend summer happenings, festivals and other events without fear.
"It's wise to be observant of one's surroundings, even if no threat assessment has been made," Pihajoki says. "Strange behaviour or other phenomena should be reported without delay. But I'm personally going to attend all the events I've already decided to go to, despite the attacks that have occurred."