MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Miami Beach Police have shifted into crowd control mode, as tens of thousands of college students and tourists prepare to travel to the party destination for spring break.
Some have already arrived. 7News cameras captured dozens of beachgoers on South Beach, Friday afternoon.
“I go to Flip University,” joked a beachgoer as he showed off his skills for the camera.
City officials said they are gearing up for the influx of revelers who will be coming down over the next month.
“We’re messaging to the kids to please come down and behave. We want them to have a good time but safely,” said Miami Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales.
Days before the official start of the season, the city put out the promo, “Come on Vacation, Don’t Leave on Probation.”
Police officers will be out in full force making sure the party people stay safe.
“We’ll be enforcing a lot our rules like the drinking in public. [There’s] this misconception that smoking marijuana is legal, which it is not,” said Miami Beach Police Officer Ernesto Rodriguez.
With the large crowds comes a large amount of traffic. Ocean Drive will be closed off during the busiest weekends in the middle of March, and officials said they’re also cracking down on what comes into the beach.
“No coolers, no big floats and whatnot, so that people, you know, can have easy sight access to see what’s going on out there,” said Morales.
Just in time for spring break, the city completed a section of Beach Walk connecting Third and Fifth streets, making it easier for spring breakers to get around. Morales was on hand for Friday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Meanwhile, officials sent a warning about going too far.
“We understand that most of these are college kids, and they want to have a good time, but sometimes they go a little overboard,” said Morales, “so we want to make sure they’re safe, our other visitors are safe and our residents.”
The city has also banned electric and motor scooters on the barrier islands until April 7.
For more information about what beachgoers can and cannot bring to the beach during spring break, click here.
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