Peaceful Levin camping ground surrounded by armed police patrol

Police were stationed at the Bartholomew Rd side of Playford Park.

A peaceful Levin camping ground became the scene of a stakeout earlier this week when armed police surrounded the grounds.

The award-winning Levin Kiwi Holiday Park was normally a scene of serenity, but a group text that was spread amongst the happy campers Tuesday morning came with a warning to stay indoors.

Police received a report about 9.50am of a person being threatened at a Parker Ave address. A heavy police presence, including armed officers, promptly surrounded the area.

Police found nothing of interest and no arrests were made.

The Levin Kiwi Holiday Park is owned by Levin couple Repi and Debbie Wright, who were looking on the bright side as they were able to use the incident to put in practice well-rehearsed safety plans.

Repi said police were impressed with their response and commended them on their safety procedures.

As a campground owner he said they had a bulk text communication network where messages were sent out to all campers to keep everyone informed. He said police were brilliant in keeping them informed and updated.

He was pleased to learn the callout was a non-event and was sympathetic to police, realising they were forced to treat any call seriously after the events in Christchurch earlier this year.

Ironically, the couple were attending a conference in Wellington this week where they were speaking to more than 300 other park owners about their business and safety practices.

Levin Kiwi Holiday Park neighboured several community halls, where several police were positioned, while there were two more armed police on the Bartholomew Rd end of Playford Park behind the toilet block.

Armed police patrolled the entrance to the Parker Ave site that backed on to Playford Park, while more were positioned on side roads with entrances to the park.

A nearby resident, who didn't want to be named, was taking a newborn baby for a walk, but put his plans on hold when he saw four police cars and the heavy police presence at the park.

"I might go back inside," he said.