Extra troops called in to help with security

LONDON - The British government this Tuesday made the decision to call in an extra 1,200 troops to help with security at the Olympic Games.

Culture, Sport, Olympics and Media Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, said decision to employ the extra troops had been taken by a committee meeting chaired by British Prime Minister, David Cameron.

The 1,200 military personnel will join the approximately 3,500 troops who are already guarding the venues for the Olympic Games, which will be officially opened this Friday, confirmed Hunt in a statement.

"On the eve of the largest peacetime event ever staged in this country, ministers are clear that we should leave nothing to chance," he wrote.

The original 3,500 troops were called in to help with security in the Games a fortnight ago after it became clear that private security firm, G4S would not be able to supply the number of security guards needed to ensure the event passed without incident.

G4S had been contracted to supply up to 10,000 security guards, but it became clear this was impossible. The company now says it is working to supply 7,000.

"Significant numbers of candidates are now reaching the final stages of the training and accreditation process each day and we are working hard to ensure that we deliver on the commitments we made to LOCOG last week," said the company, while Hunt insisted that the situation was improving.

"G4S numbers continue to rise significantly and we have every expectation that will continue to be the case," he said.

Meanwhile the hot weather, which has finally arrived in England this week caused problems for some travelers to the Olympic park after it was revealed some trains were not stopping at the nearby station of Stratford because of the heat.

The company which runs trains out of London's Liverpool street station to the east of London, Greater Anglia, announced that some services would be suspended and others would not stop at Stratford.

A spokesman explained that the high (for the UK) temperatures affected the older overhead electric cables on lines starting in Liverpool street. Some of the cables are over 50 years old and work is being carried out to replace then with new ones.