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Virginia Beach police prepare for Beach Weekend 2016

Posted at 4:33 PM, Apr 20, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-20 18:28:49-04

Virginia Beach police say they are expecting anywhere from 30,000 to 40,000 college-aged people at the oceanfront this weekend.

Since violence broke out at the Beach Weekend celebration three years ago, police have taken action to make their presence more known.

In the last two years, things have been more tame when there were more officers on foot and in the crowds.

Police also held a series of safety planning meetings with community members. This year, they decided against the large meetings, and instead had smaller meetings with individual business owners on how they can prepare for the weekend.

"While we try to make sure we are prepared and ready to respond to everything, there are just some things we can't control. When those uncontrollable things happen, at the end of the day we'll have enough staff to address it immediately and quickly," Captain Sean Adams told NewsChannel 3.

Captain Adams says they will be fully staffed and have traffic plans in place to help control the crowds.