MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

South Beach under curfew to curb Spring Break havoc

Miami does not want violent Spring Break celebrating students but they keep coming, Gelber complained

Authorities in Miami have decreed a curfew for the South Beach area following several shootings, one of them on Ocean Drive, which have sparked chaos during the Spring Break celebrations, it was reported.

Miami Mayor Dan Gelber found that tens of thousands of students were causing havoc while celebrating Spring Break. “We cannot sustain this anymore, we simply cannot. We don't ask for Spring Break, we don't promote it, we just put up with it and we honestly don't want to do it anymore,” he was quoted as saying.

“If you want to see what a very frustrated and angry mayor looks like, you're looking at him,” Gelber also said during a press conference.

“Our city is well past its endpoint. What we are watching and what we are feeling and what we are observing is simply unacceptable at every level,” he added.

The curfew will become effective Thursday and span through next Tuesday, it was announced amid a more comprehensive “state of emergency” to address the situation at the many bars and restaurants on Ocean Drive, an area which gets overcrowded at night during this time of the year.

The decision comes after two women were victims of a shooting on Ocean Drive early Monday morning. A day earlier, three people were injured in a similar incident.

Miami City Manager Alina Hudak said that these shootings were are acts of cowardice resulting from people “who come to the city randomly and behave this way.” According to the New York Times, since Spring Break began in mid-February, nine police officers have been wounded in different incidents.

Hudak also explained it was very difficult to control the area with so many people because South Beach is connected by several bridges to downtown Miami.

This is not the first time a curfew measure has been imposed. Last year it had already been adopted eventually to start discouraging college students from choosing Miami as a Spring Break destination.