Norfolk Police reject request for details of how they would respond to a zombie attack
Library image of "zombies" in Norwich City Centre. Photo by Simon Finlay. - Credit: Archant Norfolk
It's the apocalyptic nightmare that has been the subject of countless gruesome films and hit shows like The Walking Dead.
Police have refused to say if they have contingency plans in place for a zombie attack in Norfolk. Photo by Simon Finlay. - Credit: Archant Norfolk
Zombies are usually dispatched by shots to the head, being burnt or decapitated.
But how Norfolk Constabulary would respond to a zombie outbreak was the subject of a Freedom of Information request by Marcus Potter.
He asked two simple questions:
• What are the provisions in case of a zombie apocalypse, and:
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• How prepared are Constabulary for a zombie apocalypse?
However his request to see how the police would tackle a hungry mob of zombies eating their way through the county's population was rejected.
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While it may seem a brain dead request, Mr Potter was not happy when the police said his plea was 'vexatious', so he fleshed out why he felt it was in the public interest.
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Mr Potter said: 'It does in fact have a serious purpose because whilst I do accept that the possibility is remote, there is a possibility that zombies may attack the county of Norfolk.
He added: 'In such an event it is inevitable that these officers will be called to dispatch the living dead by members of the public and members of other emergency services, in particular the ambulance service who may encounter them whilst responding to emergency calls.
'Therefore it is in the public interest that the Constabulary are prepared for such an eventuality and that officers are correctly trained in appropriate techniques to dispatch the living dead and knowing the limits of their capacity in doing so.
'For example, it is essential that an unarmed response officer knows what to do when they notice the living dead and whether they should instead request armed backup. Either way it is essential that officers know what to do in such an event both for their own safety and that of others who they might bite if infected.'
A review by Norfolk Police's information compliance manger John McGuire stated: 'I have considered this as part of my review and I do not agree with the applicant. The probability of a plan being required is so remote that should resources be tasked in producing a plan it is likely to be in the public interest from the opposite view, due to the potentially ineffective use of resource against other operational priorities.'
