Dozens of arrests were made and some police officers were injured after a Fourth of July celebration got out of hand along the Newport Peninsula in Newport Beach.
Officers were dispatched to the location at about 7 p.m. Saturday amid reports of large crowds lighting fireworks and fighting, according to multiple media reports.
At 8:25 p.m., according to Newport Notified, the Newport Beach Police Department’s alert system, an unlawful assembly was declared in the area of 26th Street and the beach due to large unruly crowds, and all residents were asked to shelter in place until further notice.
By 10:50 p.m., all beaches in the city were closed and officers were actively clearing traffic from the Peninsula. At 3:30 a.m., the southbound lanes of Balboa Boulevard at Newport Boulevard were re-opened.
Video from the scene showed some police on horseback charging into a crowd on the beach to break up the unruly revelers. Some people are seen throwing punches at other partygoers. A nearby Pavilions store was also looted Saturday night.
An unknown number of officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries while trying to calm the crowd.
A watch commander at the Newport Beach Police Department could not be reached for comment Sunday morning, but ABC7 reported that police arrested at least 100 people.