Fireworks set off during Fourth of July mayhem in Minneapolis, 16 arrested
MINNEAPOLIS -- Sixteen teenagers were arrested overnight during a chaotic holiday in Minneapolis in which crowds of people set off fireworks throughout the city.
Video obtained by WCCO shows several youths pointing fireworks at police cars near Boom Island in northeast Minneapolis. Officers were trying to get them to clear the area shortly after 1:30 a.m.
Another group of "a couple hundred" people gathered around Lake Bde Maka Ska to watch people set off fireworks. There were so many people that it took time to clear everyone out, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said.
"The targeting of innocent people with fireworks is unlawful, dangerous, and wholly unacceptable," he said at a press conference on Wednesday.
To prepare for the weekend, O'Hara said MPD had more than doubled staffing in comparison to last year's Fourth of July, and dozens of officers were working in specialized units. Minnesota state troopers and Hennepin County Sheriff's deputies also offered their assistance.
After a shooting on the Stone Arch Bridge hospitalized seven people last year on the Fourth of July, the city closed the bridge overnight during the holiday weekend.
"When compared to last year, when the MDP was overwhelmed and overrun, this year, we kept these groups on the run throughout the night," O'Hara said.
The MPD responded to hundreds of calls, he said, including four shootings. Eleven children were arrested, along with five adults, O'Hara added.
No bystanders were injured from the fireworks, he added, though one person injured himself while setting off fireworks on Boom Island.
While praising the efforts of the MPD, O'Hara added that there were still lessons to be learned from the chaos this year - which police will continue to assess.
