Local news and opinion reaching the communities of nosara, samarA and Nicoya
Log in |
Return to homepage
home regional community sports entertainment surf nature health en Espa�ol English
     
Archives
December 09
January 2010
February 2010
Water Edition
March 2010
April 2010
May 2010
June 2010
July 2010
August 2010
September 10
October 10
November 10
December 10
January 2011
February 2011
March 2011
April 2011
May 2011
June 2011
July 2011
August 2011
September 11
October 11
November 11
December 11
January 2012
February 2012
March 2012
April 2012
May 2012
June 2012
July 2012
August 2012
September 12
October 12
November 12
December 12
January 13
February 13
March 13
April 13
May 13
 
Media
Partners
  El Pais
  Inside Costa Rica
  Costa Spirit
  Q Costa Rica
  Today Costa Rica
  El Sabanero
connect
FaceBook
Twitter
 
CLASSIFIEDS
 
community
  Nosara Animal Care
   
  Nosara Info
   
Esquelita de Nosara
  Friends of Nosara
   
  Nosara Civic Association
  Nosara
Wildlife
Pelada Community Unites to Improve Local Safety
By Kelly Patterson

On November 12, over 40 Playa Pelada residents and business owners convened at Pancho’s restaurant to candidly discuss recent criminal activities; to teach the community how to better prevent and protect themselves (and each other) from future crimes; as well as to introduce Playa Pelada residents to one another, in order that the community can better respond, collectively, to crime, natural disasters and/or medical emergencies.

This meeting was called shortly after two alarming incidents, the previous weekend, involving firearms. On November 6th, , a local doctor, Katya Porras, was ambushed by two armed men, in broad daylight. Dr. Porras states that two masked men jumped out of the bushes, near Rio Frio bridge, on the gravel road between Samara and Nosara. The masked men opened fire on her car as she approached the bridge, and continued to shoot as she sped past. Fortunately, Dr. Katya managed to escape without injury, with only a flat tire and some bullet damage to the body of her vehicle, but she was unable to immediately reach local police.
That same night, Richard Moffat, long-time resident of Playa Pelada, was held at gun-point at 1 AM at his house. The gun-man asked for several thousand colones. To add further insult to the assault, Richard Moffat was unable to reach police at 911 at that hour of the morning.

Both Agnes Pigneiro, President of the Security Council, and a local representative from the Tourism Police, reassured the community that new crime prevention and protection systems have already been implemented, such as:

  • 24-hour police coverage of Playa Pelada and Guiones
  • To report suspicious persons or crime, call the Tourism Police at 2682 0075 (not 911)
    All calls to the police are confidential
  • La Fuerza Publica will be dispatching a police drug task force out for random drug busts throughout the Nosara area
  • The Police Station in Playa Guiones is ALWAYS open—if the station appears to be closed, just knock loudly, several times—there is an officer in there!
  • Bi-lingual volunteers to help translate crime reports, or suspicious persons, to the police

A community-based prevention and protection worksheet was passed out to all attendees, with useful tips such as:

  • Make sure your house or business is well-lit at night
  • Cut high grass and bushes in your yard, people can hide in tall grass and bushes.
  • Keep the radio or television on when you go out.
  • Do not leave windows, doors or gates open any time of the day.
  • Vehicle protection: keep it locked at all times and do not leave items in the vehicle
  • Never walk alone during the night and walk in well-lit places
  • Pay attention to your purse and/or wallet at all times, especially in public places like restaurants and the beach

More Regional News

Santa Teresita A Community Built From The Ground Up And Standing On It’s Own Two Feet

Following a dusty, bumpy ride through the tropical countryside, we arrive at the community of Santa Teresita, or Little Saint Teresa, a quaint settlement of tightly knit houses encircling a general store located less than 10 kilometers East of Nosara.. More >

Government Toughens Up Concealed Weapons Measures on Foreigners

Stemming from the death of a 20-year-old university student and an OIJ (Judicial Investigation Organization) agent at the hands of a band of Jamaicans, an executive order has restricted the issuance of new concealed weapons permits for foreigners that reside in Costa Rica. More >

UN, Nosara and Samara Team Up on Community Development

Both international and national organizations (FOMUDE, MIDEPLAN, ifam, ONU HABITAT, and UNDP: United Nations Development Programme) have allocated funds to Nicoya Municipality for at least 11 community development projects and programs, throughout the entire Nicoya region over the next 5 to 10 years. More >

Puente Capulin

The bridge located over the “Capulin” ravine alongside the Nosara airstrip fell to pieces following the strong rains that fell during the first few days in November, dragging away fractions of the drains that were already damaged over a year ago. .More >

Water Reservoirs Could Save Harvest in Summer

Hope begins to appear for small-scale farmers in Guanacaste; just as the drought produced by the ‘El Niño’ phenomenon approaches.More >

Drought Relief Short Lived in Guanacaste

When VON questioned the National Meteorology Institute (IMN) on the effects of the late-October rains in Guanacaste, Meteorologist Gabriela Chinchilla reported on November 13th that “this cyclone marked the end of the transition period from the rainy season to the dry season in Guanacaste” and that “this region has now begun the dry period”. She further declared that because “the rains did not maintain for 24 continuous hours”, the storm in fact “did not come to establish a long rainy spell in the region”. In light of these factors Chinchilla announced “the contribution of rain generated by Hurricane Ida was not very high”, leaving little reason to believe that the rains had any sizeable impact on Guanacaste’s water shortage. . More >

Casatur promotes a new image for Samara

Working toward having the “Bandera Azul” (Blue Flag) raised once again over Playa Samara is one of the goals that the Cámara Samareña de Turismo (Casatur) (Samara’s Chamber of Tourism) has undertaken for the upcoming year. . More >

Small Budget for Samara and Nosara in 2010

It seems as though the districts of Samara and Nosara will have to make due with a low road maintenance budget next year, as they will have to share 48 million colones ($85,000) allocated by the Municipality of Nicoya.. More >

Government Toughens Up Concealed Weapons Measures on Foreigners

Stemming from the death of a 20-year-old university student and an OIJ (Judicial Investigation Organization) agent at the hands of a band of Jamaicans, an executive order has restricted the issuance of new concealed weapons permits for foreigners that reside in Costa Rica. More >

 

Contact us: NOSARA [email protected] / PUBLICITY and ADVERTISING [email protected]
Copyright 2012© The Voice of Nosara