THE rarity of serious sexual attacks in Guernsey means that, thankfully, they retain the power to shock. The day when the island takes such crimes for granted will hopefully never arrive.

The latest statistics from Guernsey Police back up their view that crimes such as the one reported on Friday night should be thought of as appalling, but isolated, incidents.

There were, for example, nine indecent assaults reported on women in 2007 – the last year with published figures – plus seven reports of rape and five of unlawful sexual intercourse. Of the rapes, three have been solved and four were outstanding.

Of course, that is still 21 serious crime reports too many but, by the standards of many parts of the UK, it is very low.

Such statistics do not, however, mean that we live in a risk-free society and should act accordingly.

As the police advise today, there are some sensible precautions which any woman worried by Friday night’s events would do well to heed.

They are especially relevant while the attacker remains at large.

Adopting such tactics as walking with confidence, always telling someone where you are going, carrying a personal alarm, wearing flat shoes (or carrying a pair as spares) and taking the best lit, most popular route home are not measures that destroy the Guernsey way of life or are signs of an overreaction.

For acknowledging that crime is a factor in our society and acting accordingly is not the same as having an irrational fear of it.

The police hope that islanders will build such simple safety measures into their lives regardless of major crime reports. In the same way that most islanders have now grown out of the habit of leaving cars and houses permanently unlocked, it is possible to adapt to changing times.

That, of course, will not stop all crime and there is, as yet, little information about this particular attack and whether anything could have been done to prevent it.

Nevertheless, a quick check of the advice offered by police before going out in the evening can only be sensible at this time.