Despite the best efforts of Councilor Ed Flynn and other city officials to curb the disorderly conduct, excessive drinking, and violence that has marred prior St. Patrick's Day Parades in South Boston, Sunday's parade again resulted in numerous arrests, some which followed assault and battery on police officers.
Nine people were arrested at the parade on various charges, and others will be issued summonses according to Boston police, who also confiscated dozens of bottles of alcohol being consumed in public.
Many youthful revelers were drinking from jugs of alcohol known as BORG (Black Out Rage Gallons), which is a trendy concoction on TikTok, and some were treated at local hospitals for intoxication.
Two officers were punched in the face when they tried to restrain drunken teenagers, and at the end of the parade fights broke out at a local park, where one man was arrested for malicious destruction of government property.
Hundreds of thousands of people otherwise enjoyed themselves at the festive event amid the heightened security measures put into place.
In the coming days there will likely be a re-assessment of what worked and what didn't as parade organizers start planning for next year, this with a view toward doing even more to make it a family friendly experience.
In a later development on Tuesday, the South Boston Allied War Veterans Council, which organizes the parade, issued a statement in which they confirmed that a group of apparently out-of-state firefighters had been evicted from the line of march during the parade for "not adhering to our Code of Conduct."
The incident in question reportedly involved spectators tossing alcoholic drinks up to the firefighter contingent, which had not been authorized to even be in the parade.
Boston Local 718 Firefighters strongly denied any involvement in the incident, and spectators have long credited local firefighters with ensuring the safety of all involved with the parade.
Last year, Councilor Flynn hinted that the parade might be moved out of South Boston if public safety issues persist, a topic of concern which will likely come up again in the coming days.
