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To: longnshort who wrote (88478)	5/22/2012 1:15:51 PM
From: joseffy	Respond to of 89467

Fighting shuts down Drew Expo early After the Drew Expo was shut down at Roanoke Civic Center, the crowd went across the street to the McDonald's restaurant. By Chase Purdy roanoke.com Listen to the 911 call Courtesy Roanoke Police Department In a two-minute 911 call to police from a McDonald’s employee, yelling can be heard in the background as employees attempted to keep the crowds from rushing into the restaurant. Roanoke police last weekend resorted to pepper-spraying raucous packs of Drew Expo carnivalgoers who swarmed the Roanoke Civic Center parking lot, peeling off their shirts and fighting, authorities said. Police spokeswoman Aisha Johnson said Monday that officers were called to the civic center Friday and Saturday nights to quell unruly crowds who threw punches and ignored officers' orders to disperse. Johnson said the instigators -- who continuously dashed around the parking lot -- started more than 30 fights Friday night, forcing the carnival to close early and sending home the 4,000 to 5,000 people who turned out for the event. Four off-duty Roanoke police officers were providing security at the carnival Friday night; five were working off-duty Saturday night, Johnson said. Each night, about five additional on-duty police officers responded to the scene, she said. Police said civic center employees reported seeing people in the crowd using pepper spray of their own on Friday night. Several people suffered minor injuries from the fights. At least one person was taken to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital after being knocked to the ground by crowds of people running to various parts of the civic center parking lot, police said. Events escalated Saturday night about 9:12 p.m. when officers again responded to reports of several fights that had broken out. Johnson said about 400 to 500 people were running across the civic center parking lot, removing their shirts and threatening one another. After repeated attempts to break up the fights, officers again used pepper spray to disperse the crowd. Police said no arrests were made. Civic center employees closed the event at 10 p.m., but it took officers 40 additional minutes to disperse the crowd from the civic center parking lot and the McDonald's restaurant across the street, Johnson said. In a two-minute 911 call to police from a McDonald's employee, yelling can be heard in the background as employees attempted to keep the crowds from rushing into the restaurant. "The more we're trying to get them out, the more they're coming in and jumping up and down and walking on tables and stuff," the employee said. "They shut the fair down across the street so all the traffic is really coming over here." The dispatcher sent more officers to the scene and encouraged the employee to try to lock the doors. On Monday, Robyn Schon, general manager of the Roanoke Civic Center, said the weekend fights will likely affect the event in coming years. "There's a good chance some things are going to change, because obviously there's a need for it," Schon said. "We're going to ascertain the whole issue or issues that we encountered this year and I guess we will probably make that call when the time is appropriate." Jan Wilkins, who has promoted the Drew Expo for 23 years, said the "little riots" at the carnival have steadily increased during the past three years. Aside from damaging the reputation of the event, Wilkins said it makes a financial impact, too. Because police ordered the carnival be closed early Saturday, Wilkins said about $22,000 was lost, compared with numbers for the same hours in 2011. "This is a real problem, and I don't think it will go away until society gets its act together," he said. "The thinking caps are on regarding what we can possibly do next year." Wilkins said he is considering spending $5,000 to erect a fence around the carnival, with one entry and exit point. His hope, he said, is that a stronger officer presence at the entrance will dissuade violence from sparking. The promoter said he regrets that people bought tickets for the rides, but couldn't use them all because the carnival was ordered to close. "I can't let a few bad apples spoil the bushel," he said. In the days following the fights, people used Twitter and Facebook to chatter about the carnival drama. A handful of foreboding individuals questioned how the fighting would affect security at the Salem Fair, set to start July 3. Reached Monday, Salem Civic Center director Carey Harveycutter said he had not heard about the Drew Expo events, but assured that the fair would be staffed accordingly with security. "I think four or five years ago there was an incident here after the gates closed, outside the facility," he said. "When you have 300,000 people together, you unfortunately have people who just don't want to play nice."