K E E P I N G P A R K S S A F E
Keeping the parks safe for visitors to enjoy is of
utmost importance to Game and Parks. Conservation
officers set up camping units on six different park
and recreation areas during the summer. In addition
to addressing public safety issues by establishing an
enforcement presence on these areas, newly hired
officers participated in this program to give them
an around-the-clock experience of issues that arise
during the busy summer. These types of efforts
can be very effective at enhancing compliance and
awareness in some areas.
Special attention and enhanced enforcement
efforts targeted large crowds at Lake McConaughy
and Branched Oak Lake. Several conservation
officers were reassigned from their normal patrol
areas throughout the summer to address drug and
alcohol issues on these areas.
Conservation officers increased their statewide
on-water enforcement efforts, primarily on state
park areas, by 48 percent in 2014, resulting in
a 42-percent increase in boating safety-related
citations. For the second straight year, there were
no boating fatalities on state park areas.
In other public safety efforts, which included
state park areas, officers were involved in 32 felony
arrests, eight incidents of child endangerment, 22
search-and-rescue incidents and eight drowning
incidents.
A law enforcement presence helps to curtail
unwanted behavior that can disrupt the family
atmosphere at our state park areas.
46 Nebraska Game and Parks Commission • 2014 Annual Report
