Aiming at more than 1,000 prisons at one of the nation’s top party venues, Miami Beach officials warned on Sunday that the rebellious spring break crowd gathered by the thousands, fighting in the streets, destroying restaurants and refusing to wear masks if made it a serious threat to public safety.
The commissioners met virtually on Sunday and extended the week for another week. emergency declaration issued on Saturday in response to South Beach’s undisciplined crowds, CBS Miami reported.
City officials have kept open the possibility of extending it until April, if necessary, and have emphasized that this is not the typical spring break group. They said they are not college students, but adults who want to break free in one of the few states that are fully open during the pandemic.
They also voted on Sunday to extend the overnight closure of three elevated thoroughfares that reach the city to prevent incoming traffic, CBS Miami said. Residents are exempt from sidewalk outages.
Law enforcement officers from at least four other agencies, along with SWAT teams, were added to help contain the noisy crowd, but it was not enough. After days of partying, including several clashes with the police, Miami Beach authorities issued a highly unorthodox curfew on Saturday from 8:00 pm to 6:00 am, forcing restaurants to stop sitting outside entirely during the three-hour emergency period. days and encouraging local businesses to voluntarily close.
More than half of the more than 1,000 prisons were from outside the state, said Mayor Raul Águila, adding that many are coming “to get involved in lawlessness and anything goes”. He also noted that the crowds were not eating at restaurants or sponsoring businesses that generated the much needed tourism dollars, but were just gathering by the thousands on the streets.
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Police officers in bulletproof vests scattered pepper spray balls on Saturday night in a challenging but mostly non-violent crowd, refusing to submit to the curfew that had been enacted just four hours earlier. Some people responded by jumping on top of cars, spinning and throwing money in the air.
A military-style vehicle was seen descending Ocean Drive, lined with palm trees, while fewer police officers from Miami Beach struggled to disperse the noisy crowd on Saturday. Tourists were asked to stay inside their hotels and pedestrians or vehicles were not allowed to enter the restricted area after 8 pm.
Miami Beach Police Chief Richard Clements was initially concerned on Monday when the crowd seemed larger than usual on a typically quieter day. A group of vehicles blocked the street “and basically had an impromptu street party,” he said. On Thursday, the crowds were growing, the fighting was starting, causing a dangerous rush of people to flee to safety.
“We couldn’t go on,” said Clements during Sunday’s meeting, defending the city’s curfew. “I think that was the right decision”,
On Friday night, the police said the party was out of control. A restaurant was “turned upside down” in the confusion, “chairs were used as weapons” and broken glass covered the floor.
Next door, the iconic Clevelander South Beach bar announced that it was temporarily suspending all food and beverage operations until at least March 24, after the crowds filled Ocean Drive, exploding in street fights.
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After firearm shots, a young woman cut her leg so hard in a stampede that she was transported to the hospital, where she initially thought she had been shot, police said.
“How many more things are we going to allow to happen before we take action,” said Clements.
Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said he has trouble sleeping at night, concerned about the out-of-control parties.
“When hundreds of people run around the streets in a panic, you realize that this is not something that a police force can control,” he said during a commission meeting on Sunday.
Local authorities have struggled to enforce COVID ordinances. Florida has no statewide masking rules, capacity limits or other restrictions, courtesy of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis’ pro-business stance.
“I think there are very few places that were opened as our state was opened,” said Gelber.
A commissioner asked if a toll could be levied on non-residents to discourage visitors. Several said it was time for a new marketing campaign to help reshape South Beach as a festive city, pointing to the small handful of prisons near Fort Lauderdale during spring break.
Local authorities and businesses have struggled to balance the tourist cortege to boost the economy and, at the same time, do it safely in the midst of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Local residents complained that they spent three to four hours in traffic after the bridges were closed during the curfew and some restaurants asked for permission to continue delivering food after the curfew.
Miami tourism officials say billions of dollars were lost when the pandemic broke out last year, canceling spring break and forcing the closure of beaches across the State of the Sun. The city’s tourism arm has just spent $ 5 million in its largest national advertising campaign in 20 years.