Mayor calls for stronger crowd control in response to chaos downtown after Opening Day

Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval has issued a statement in the aftermath of a busy night for Cincinnati police who dealt with large, unruly crowds after the city's Opening Day festivities.The crowds were caught on camera. Several fights were reported and multiple arrests were made all in the hours after Opening Day celebrations.At one point, much of The Banks was blocked off, as well as access to the Roebling Bridge. Those areas have since reopened, but there are still a lot of questions."It's an outrage. This is exactly what causes fear and concern among our guests who come to support our urban core," the mayor's statement begins. "It's the kind of behavior that forces us to look at and implement more severe crowd control restrictions in our Downtown."Video obtained by WLWT shows crowds swarming officers at the Banks Thursday evening. People can be seen pushing, shoving and falling over each other.Other videos posted online, that WLWT does not have permission to share, depict fights breaking out as well from Fountain Square to Washington Park and Over-the-Rhine.Cincinnati police were working crowd control and dealing with fights into the early hours of the morning."Thank you to our Cincinnati Police Department for your quick and effective work. I'm grateful that our Police, Hamilton County Sheriff, and state law partners were prepared with a coordinated and swift response to keep folks safe and prevent things from escalating even further," the mayor continued. "I am glad that they are okay. But we cannot ask this of them every night."My expectation is full accountability from those involved last night, and that every stakeholder and community member is willing to work with us to prevent this from happening again," Mayor Pureval's statement concludes.In a social media post, Cincinnati's police union -- FOP Queen City Lodge No. 69 -- asked for prayers for the officers "trying to manage an unruly crowd of criminals that are terrorizing OTR, Downtown and the Banks."The union's post continues, saying, "this is a direct result of a soft on crime City Hall and Hamilton County Judges. Welcome to lawless Cincinnati."WLWT spoke to a sergeant dealing with the crowds after bars closed. We're told that while officers were busy, crowds like this are pretty normal after a big event like Opening Day.

Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval has issued a statement in the aftermath of a busy night for Cincinnati police who dealt with large, unruly crowds after the city's Opening Day festivities.

The crowds were caught on camera. Several fights were reported and multiple arrests were made all in the hours after Opening Day celebrations.

At one point, much of The Banks was blocked off, as well as access to the Roebling Bridge. Those areas have since reopened, but there are still a lot of questions.

"It's an outrage. This is exactly what causes fear and concern among our guests who come to support our urban core," the mayor's statement begins. "It's the kind of behavior that forces us to look at and implement more severe crowd control restrictions in our Downtown."

Video obtained by WLWT shows crowds swarming officers at the Banks Thursday evening. People can be seen pushing, shoving and falling over each other.

Other videos posted online, that WLWT does not have permission to share, depict fights breaking out as well from Fountain Square to Washington Park and Over-the-Rhine.

Cincinnati police were working crowd control and dealing with fights into the early hours of the morning.

"Thank you to our Cincinnati Police Department for your quick and effective work. I'm grateful that our Police, Hamilton County Sheriff, and state law partners were prepared with a coordinated and swift response to keep folks safe and prevent things from escalating even further," the mayor continued. "I am glad that they are okay. But we cannot ask this of them every night.

"My expectation is full accountability from those involved last night, and that every stakeholder and community member is willing to work with us to prevent this from happening again," Mayor Pureval's statement concludes.

In a social media post, Cincinnati's police union -- FOP Queen City Lodge No. 69 -- asked for prayers for the officers "trying to manage an unruly crowd of criminals that are terrorizing OTR, Downtown and the Banks."

The union's post continues, saying, "this is a direct result of a soft on crime City Hall and Hamilton County Judges. Welcome to lawless Cincinnati."

WLWT spoke to a sergeant dealing with the crowds after bars closed. We're told that while officers were busy, crowds like this are pretty normal after a big event like Opening Day.