As preparations for the long-anticipated wedding are in full swing, the police have voiced major concerns, namely that of the old market town being exposed to terror attacks, including by snipers, the Sunday Times reported.
After the couple picked the royal open horse-driven Ascot Landau carriage, perfectly suited for dry weather, one senior police source updated on the security preparations told the newspaper that the procession is linked to major security threats, given the range of tall buildings towering over the procession route.
"It presents an A-Z of security problems and it would be very difficult to evacuate if there was an attack,” Dai Davies, a former head of royal protection at Scotland Yard, told the Sunday Times. Another source added: “There are so many areas where gunmen could hide and terrorists could drop things onto the procession below."
According to the big day scenario, prepared by Kensington Palace, the newly wed couple is expected to step into their carriage following the wedding ceremony, with close family members standing on the West Steps of the palace to wave Harry and Meghan off.
To guarantee security at the event, which is expected to draw thousands of regal family fans, over 3,000 officers from Scotland Yard, who make up about 2.5 percent of its total personnel, will be deployed.
To top it all off, dozens of ASA soldiers and a royal protection squad have been training specifically for the May 19 wedding, having reportedly transformed part of the Credenhill barracks in Hereford into a mock version of Windsor central street to hold a dress rehearsal in the run-up to the event.
Separately, additional CCTV cameras and extra technology to decipher and record number plates have also been installed in the historic town, which lies in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, UK. The first sweep of the town was finalized last month as explosive detection dogs searched letterboxes, phone booths and drains for potentially dangerous devices, and another major checkup is still ahead.
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