The city is taking extraordinary measures to crack down on spring breakers flocking to Florida’s restriction-free beaches and nightlife

“Officers began dispersing crowds at 8 p.m. and ultimately achieved a satisfactory level of compliance,” police spokesperson Ernesto Rodriguez told CNN.

The 8 p.m. curfew and road closures in the city’s entertainment district will be in effect until Tuesday, Gelber said at a news conference Saturday. The causeways to Miami Beach from the mainland will be closed to non-local traffic starting at 9 p.m. for the next few nights, Gelber said.

Gelber told CNN that the biggest issues with the crowds have been at night.

“It feels like a rock concert, wall-to-wall people over blocks and blocks,” Gelber said.

A large crowd of people gathered on a walkway near the beach during spring break in Miami Beach, Florida, on March 20, 2021.

On Friday night, someone shot a weapon into the air, and there was a riot, he said.

“Other things have happened that are similarly challenging, and so it feels like a tinder, it feels like just any match could set it off,” the mayor said.

The situation has worsened with each day, Gelber said, and the pandemic “makes things even more challenging.”

Hotel concerned about safety

Miami Beach nightlife has never been for the faint of heart, but local officials and residents have noticed the particular aggressiveness of this spring’s revelers during the ongoing pandemic.

The Clevelander South Beach, one of Miami Beach’s most iconic hotels, announced Friday that it will temporarily halt its food and beverage operations due to safety concerns for its employees and patrons.

“Therefore, we have made the difficult decision to temporarily close the food and beverage operations” until at least March 24, hotel management said in its message.

The Clevelander said management “will re-evaluate the situation over the coming days and decide whether to re-open or remain temporarily closed.” Employees will “be paid their full salary” while the dining and bar areas are closed, the hotel said.

Miami Beach police ramped up staffing on February 3 “to cover Super Bowl weekend, President’s Day weekend, and then we rolled straight into Spring Break staffing,” Rodriguez, the police spokesperson, said in a summary.

Since February 3, officers have made more than 900 arrests in the city, “more than 300 of which were for felony offenses,” the summary said. “At least 50% off those arrested reside outside of Florida.”

Miami-Dade police have been assisting MBPD since Tuesday because of the crowds, Rodriguez said.

Florida Highway Patrol officers were also assisting with traffic control on the MacArthur and Julia Tuttle Causeways, bridges that connect the island city to the mainland, MBPD said in a tweet Friday.

Other agencies assisting with safety efforts include Coral Gables Police Department and the Miami Dade Department of Corrections, according to Rodriguez.

“If you’re coming here because you’ve been pent up and you want to let loose, you think anything goes, please don’t come here,” Gelber told CNN. “We have extra police everywhere, we’re going to arrest people, and we have been. We’re going to keep order.”

“If you’re coming here to go crazy, go somewhere else. We don’t want you,” Gelber said.

Correction: A previous version of this story mischaracterized the reason why the Clevelander South Beach is temporarily halting its food and beverage operations. The Clevelander is halting operations due to safety concerns for its employees and patrons.