Police had to evacuate the Lauderhill Mall following a fight involving 200 to 300 people, Tuesday afternoon.
Police said hundreds of people wound up in a fight after two girls at nearby park began to tussle at around 4:30 p.m. Their fight spilled into into the parking lot of the mall and then into the mall itself.
The reason for the fight means unknown, and one was hit in the head and needed to be hospitalized. Nas Wilson, a witness, explained what she saw. “It started with two girls at the park, and then, before you know it, a whole bunch of people came, and they were fighting over there. We moved to the terminal and then we moved to the Lauderhill Mall. Once you got to the Quadrille Mall, a whole bunch of police came. They almost broke the glass and all in there.”
Police are maintaining a large presence in the area to make sure those involved in the disturbance do not come back. SWAT arrived on the scene, as well. Police walked around with K-9s and rifles displayed in a show of force.
The mall was closed for about an hour, but it has since reopened for business.
Police said a message on Facebook or Twitter led to this brawl. Lauderhill Police Lt. Michael Butkus said, “It was officially reported that one of the social media outlets, either a Facebook account or a Twitter account was actually used as a way to get a message out. What that message was, at this point, we don’t know.”
Police have made no arrests.