Long Beach Police Break Up Crowd Of Hundreds, No Arrests Made

LONG BEACH, NY — A gathering of hundreds of young people on the beach Saturday night was broken up by Long Beach and Nassau County police, but no arrests were made.

Police say they responded to a call to the beach near Edwards Boulevard around 9:45 p.m. for a large crowd. When the officers arrived, they say they found about 700 young people partying on the beach.

The police saw the people were drinking, playing loud music and "engaging in disorderly conduct." According to Newsday, there were also reports of fights.

Because of the size of the crowd, the Long Beach police called in assistance from the Nassau County police, and the crowd was eventually dispersed. Long Beach police say no one was injured, no summons were issued and no arrests were made, but the incident is under investigation.

It was the second time in a month that police had to break up a large crowd at the beach. In late June, around 1,500 people gathered on the sand, and police also sent them home with no arrests.

While not singling out Long Beach specifically, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo took people who have been flaunting social distancing rules to task at a press conference Monday Morning.

"We know enough about the virus to know that if you have congregations of people, you are going to spread the virus. What they are doing is reckless, and it has to stop," Cuomo said. "I"m telling you in plain New York-speak, it's stupid, what you are doing. Don't be stupid."