'There Was No Riot' On Final Day Of Summer Smash At SeatGeek: Police

BRIDGEVIEW, IL — Bridgeview police say there was no riot Sunday on the final day of Summer Smash at SeatGeek Stadium where rapper Chief Keef was the scheduled performer.

Chief Rick Mancha told Patch that fest goers were told to evacuate the stage area outside the stadium in the parking lot, when a powerful thunderstorm and high wind gusts rolled through the area around 5 p.m. Sunday.

Businesses near SeatGeek Stadium began calling 911 to report “uncontrollable crowds” swarming their establishments during the rain delay.

“We sought assistance from outside agencies,” the police chief added. “However, we soon discovered that the crowds were just kids getting out of the rain. We released the assist units as they were not needed.”

Other fest goers sought refuge from the rain under tents or inside the stadium. As the rain continued, some ventured out and grabbed water bottles that were in the walkway.

“A barricade separated the two sides,” Mancha said. “A plastic water bottle fight broke out, much like a water balloon fight.”

Rumors of a riot at SeatGeek spread like wildfire across neighborhood social media, sparked by residents listening to unconfirmed police radio transmissions on scanner apps.

Bridgeview police estimated daily attendance around 35,000 during each day of the music fest.
Many neighbors near SeatGeek complained about the sound system’s bass thundering through the neighborhood. Residents remarked on the inconvenience of having to show proof of residency and passes from the village for residents and their guests. Some complained of 10-minute waits to get back into the neighborhood.

“Just wait until RiotFest,” disgruntled commenters said, a three-day punk rock fest set for September that is moving from the city to SeatGeek.

One fest goer posted on a Bridgeview and Justice Neighborhood Watch and Information Facebook group that it was only a handful of people causing issues at Summer Smash, compared to the number of people in attendance “which will happen at any similar event regardless of the type of music.”

“These events draw crowds of people from other states and even other countries. Not once did I feel unsafe except when they tried to evacuate everyone for five minutes of rain which made a lot of people angry and everyone came rushing back in pushing past security including people without wristbands who [haven’t] been searched by security. I was almost trampled but in the end it worked out okay.”

Around 11 p.m. Saturday,a person was shot near 87th Street and Harlem Avenue following a vehicle collision. Police said the instgator was the person shot. The incident appeared to be unrelated to Summer Smash.