Police arrested 54 people after an annual event in which chaotic scenes unfolded on a Georgia beach when women began fighting.
This year’s Orange Crush rally drew more than 6,000 people to Tybee Island, where noisy spring breakers inflicted an estimated $220,000 in costs on the community, including for damage and cleanup.
In addition to the arrest tally, authorities also issued 116 citations to participants and recovered three stolen firearms, as well as a stolen vehicle.
Before the event began, Tybee Island Police expanded their ranks with more than 100 law enforcement officers from the Georgia State Police, Georgia Department of Natural Resources and others local police departments.
They did this in a bid to avoid the kind of chaos that characterized the previous Orange Crush event, for which more than 100,000 revelers descended on the three-mile island.
This year’s Orange Crush event, which saw a huge fight break out on the beach boardwalk (pictured), resulted in 54 arrests and 116 citations.
During spring break, Tybee Island Beach, Georgia’s largest public beach, was littered with all kinds of trash, which was then collected by volunteers and lifeguards.
For this year’s event, the small resort town declined to rent the pier pavilion, where many unruly and troublesome partygoers gathered last year. Authorities also locked down the pier and used it as a sort of command post for law enforcement. But despite the city’s best efforts, violence erupted again on Saturday.
At one point during the raucous party, part of a spring break tradition started by Savannah State University students more than 30 years ago, a violent fight broke out on the beach promenade.
Video captured the shocking melee, during which several women – some of whom were topless – could be seen violently punching and fighting each other.
The disturbing footage showed the women punching each other while other revelers lined the promenade and cheered the fighters.
Amid the scuffle, some women had their tops pulled down or moved.
Some women stopped fighting and tried to put clothes on. Another woman, in a green swimsuit, could be seen continuing to fight, even after her breasts were revealed.
During the Orange Crush, the beach was littered with trash, much of which was eventually washed into the ocean.
The Orange Crush event inflicted an estimated $220,000 in costs on the small resort town of Tybee Island.
In one horrific moment, a smaller woman with fiery orange hair pulled another woman to the ground by her hair, then began beating her before being dragged away by other women.
Later in the video, the same orange-haired woman punched a woman in a green bikini so hard that it momentarily knocked the other woman’s head back.
Throughout the nearly two-and-a-half minute video, men and women applaud and shout enthusiastically while women on the boardwalk exchange blows.
Despite the violence displayed, state and local officials insisted the event was peaceful and orderly.
As the event unfolded Saturday, Maj. Bob Holley of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources said, “The behavior was pretty good today. »
Orange Crush occurs every year. This year, 6,000 participants descended on Tybee Island for their spring break party. During the event, police recovered three stolen firearms as well as a stolen vehicle.
The Orange Crush takes place every year and is mainly made up of students. During last year’s party, 100,000 revelers descended on the three-mile island, straining the small town’s resources. To avoid a repeat of last year, Tybee Island police have been augmented with officers from other departments.
Tybee Island lifeguards and some Orange Crush participants gathered on the beach Sunday morning to begin cleaning up the beach, which was trashed during the event.
Speaking to WSAV, Holley said, “We’ve responded to a few medical calls with Tybee medical authorities and that’s about the extent of what we did today.”
Tybee Island Mayor Brian West struck a similar tone during his interview with WTOC11 on Monday.
West told the outlet that the weekend was an enjoyable experience and drew a calmer crowd to the 3-mile-long island.
“I feel like we had a real student body, you know, this year. And it was a pleasant experience for us here on Tybee.
A video uploaded to TikTok during the event documented the large amount of trash strewn along the beach at Tybee Island, Georgia’s largest public beach.
In the video, empty beer cans and liquor bottles, along with other debris, lay on the sand and were washed into the ocean.
The video sparked angry reactions from some viewers, as one commenter wrote: “Wow, it’s not hard to use the trash can.” »
And another person issued this stern rebuke: “If you can’t respect the beach, stay away from the beach. »
On Sunday morning, the day after the event, members of Tybee Island Ocean Rescue and some Orange Crush participants gathered along the beach, where they worked together to pick up trash left by partygoers.
The cleanup ended up taking longer than expected, starting Sunday morning and ending Monday.
After the cleanup was complete, Tybee Island Ocean Rescue shared on Facebook that it had removed more than 10 cartloads of trash from the shore.
But rescuers and participants had their work cut out for them, and the cleanup continued into Monday.
Tybee Island Ocean Rescue posted a message on Facebook thanking “everyone who helped Ocean Rescue lifeguards pick up trash yesterday afternoon!” »
According to the post, rescuers and volunteers removed enough trash from the shore to fill ten all-terrain vehicles.
But even after their hard work, with the high tide arriving at 6:54 p.m., much of the waste was washed into the sea.
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