Extra Police Being Deployed For Ultra Music Weekend
MIAMI (CBS4) - The constant thumping of bass will be felt again across downtown Miami as electronic music lovers converge on the area in just about two weeks.
The 2014 Ultra Music Festival comes to Miami March 28-30. In recent years, tickets to the festival have sold out with more than 150,000 in attendance. Police are encouraging people to be prepared for the madness.
The Ultra Music Festival is known for bringing the world's best deejays to Miami. It's also known for attracting some serious problems for residents of downtown.
"Sound, what I know, sound is an issue to the surrounding buildings. I know people who live in the buildings they do get loud sounds," said Armando Cervera of The Hampton Inn, who attended a briefing by police for concerned residents and business
Sound checks will begin Monday, March 24th at 4:30 p.m. A full sound check will take place Friday, March 28th, at 3 p.m., one hour before the festival officially starts.
Parking will be a nightmare in the downtown area will be a nightmare. The Miami Police Department is encouraging residents and anyone coming to the festival to use public transportation.
In previous years, crowd control has been a problem. This year, the number of officers patrolling the area has been bumped up.
"This year we have an increase of over 50 officers being deployed in addition to the number that normally patrols downtown Miami," said commander Lazaro Ferro of the Miami Police Department.
More than 250 will be on patrol during the festival which will be footing the bill for the extra security.
"We also had a lot complaints about garbage bins which flowed and we want to make sure that these are constantly being cleaned," said Ferro.
This year garbage service will start earlier and be more frequent throughout the weekend.
