SAVANNAH, Ga. -- So many cops, so little to do.

The days leading up to the G8 summit on Sea Island have been so uneventful that the thousands of police officers and military men and women helping with security on adjoining St. Simons Island and up the coast in Savannah can only wait for something to happen.

In the meantime, they parade around in their patrol cars with the sirens on, lounge in lawn chairs at roadside checkpoints, swap stories and jokes, and try to stay on guard.

There are about 20,000 law enforcement officers and National Guard troops from all over Georgia here for the summit.

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"Whatever can possibly go wrong, we're equipped to handle it," Jimmie Sams, a private security contractor brought in to help the Savannah police.

The overwhelming show of force apparently has scared away protesters. Only a few handfuls of activists had showed up by Monday -- the eve of the three-day meeting. There have been no arrests or disturbances.

But few locals or tourists are evident, either. One observer said that coastal Georgians used to seeing the streets patroled by military men in the humvees during hurricanes apparently responded to this event the same way and left town.

But those reponsible for the protection of some of the world's most powerful men say that after the Sept. 11, 2001, these measures are necessary for high-profile events like this summit.

"You have the eight most powerful economic countries coming here with their leaders," said Maj. Douglas Martin, a Canadian Army officer working with the North Atlantic Air Defense Command team in Savannah. "It's vital that people know we have a very good ... defense system in place.

Channel 4 has crews in both Brunswick and Savannah reporting in every Eyewitness News broadcast during this week's G8 Summit. Tune in for the latest information, and look for updates throughout the day on News4Jax.com.