03-22-2019, 08:42 AM
Police report 514 charges, 18 arrests at St. Patrick’s Day bash on Ezra Avenue in Waterloo
Quote:At its peak — at about 2 p.m. on Sunday — police say there were 33,000 revellers on Ezra.https://www.therecord.com/news-story/923...-waterloo/
"We have taken a small town in Ontario and put them within a municipal block," Larkin said Wednesday in an interview.
For the first time since crowds started partying in the streets more than 25 year ago, Waterloo Regional Police closed Bricker Street and part of King Street, from Bricker to Ezra.
Larkin said the "magnitude" of the crowd is "morphing this into a very dangerous event."
"Our biggest concern is that you start to lose the ability to police the event," he said.
It's also the first time, police say, that fist fights broke out, and rocks and glass and plastic bottles were thrown into the crowd.
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Police said more officers will be needed next year to manage the party, which he said is "unlawful and unsafe."
For three years, Peel Regional Police officers have assisted local police. Larkin said more officers from other services will be required in the future.