About 70% of break-ins are through a door, and nearly half of those are through unlocked doors.

Winnipeg police are trying to cut that number down by educating the public. They’re starting in Winnipeg’s North End by launching the William Whyte Home Smart Safety Initiative.

The initiative will see 50 officers, cadets, and volunteers including members of the Bear Clan Patrol going door to door in the neighbourhood on Friday and Saturday to engage with the community and give homeowners tips for keeping their property secure.

“Most property crimes are preventable, and most property crimes are crimes of opportunity,” patrol sergeant Phil Penner said during a media launch Friday at William Whyte School. “With the information we’re giving to the community over these two days, hopefully we can help reduce the likelihood of them becoming victims of crime.”

Not surprisingly, home break-ins are most common during the day between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., when people tend to be away. Garage break-ins are just the opposite, being most common from 11 p.m. to 9 a.m., when people are sleeping. And each break and enter takes on average less than three minutes, so police pointed out the importance of locking doors and windows, whether you’re at home or not.

Police also asked people to be careful posting vacation plans on social media, as it can give people a good sense of when your house might be empty.

Due to property crime, many community patrol groups are popping up around the city, following the lead of the Bear Clan Patrol, a community based volunteer-driven safety patrol which operates in the North End.

“We’re non-violent, non-confrontational, and non-judgmental, and we’re just out there trying to attend to the non-policing issues of our community members,” Bear Clan Executive Director James Favel said. “We’re trying to reduce the need for the police and ambulances to come and take people out of our community.”

Favel says these watch groups are integral to creating community.

“It’s important for the community to become engaged,” Favel said. “People aren’t engaging with each other when they see each other in the street. We’ve got people that are looking at their shoes instead of looking at the people’s faces as they walk by. We want to get that feeling of the village back. We want people to be connected with one another. If you’re paying attention to what your neighbour is doing, and what’s happening in your streets, then things will get better.”

jfriesen@postmedia.com