Authorities in Rio de Janerio said Wednesday they were boosting the number of police at this year's carnival, and put the number of visitors for the event at 705,000.
Some 9,000 officers will be providing security for the street festivities, which are to kick off Friday and last to Tuesday next week.
Their number has been reinforced by five percent over last year's deployment, and they have orders to keep extra watch over the city's notoriously crime-ridden slums, the security office of Rio de Janeiro state said.
Many of the police will be stationed at Rio's Sambodrome, a 900-meter (a hamf-mile) avenue lined with stands along which the skimpily clad members of the samba schools will be strutting their stuff Sunday and Monday. More than 50,000 spectators are expected to be in attendance each of the nights.
The famous beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema will also be carefully watched.
According to the authorities, more than 200,000 foreign tourists will in Rio to participate in the carnival.
Nearly 80 percent of the 27,000 hotel rooms in Rio are already booked, the industry association said.
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