Rams fans celebrating victory in the Super Bowl flooded the streets of downtown Los Angeles Sunday, Feb. 13, prompting an order to clear the area from police.
Per CHP, several off-ramps on the 110 freeway are CLOSED in the Downtown LA area. You can expect heavy traffic and road closures. Please monitor traffic conditions and avoid driving into the area if possible. pic.twitter.com/pSsX0hB4L7
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) February 14, 2022
Large crowd at 11th and hope…@gabenewsla live at 9pm on @NBCLA. LAPD has ordered crowd to disburse. #Rams #DTLA pic.twitter.com/CX5Yp1JPLU
— Katherine Picazo (@PicazoKatherine) February 14, 2022
Officers issued an order to disperse from the area of 11th and Hope streets at about 9 p.m., Los Angeles Police Officer Lizeth Lomeli said. Authorities did not have an immediate estimate on the number of people there, but the crowd was seen filling the intersection in live footage broadcast from the scene.
New spot. #DTLA 12th and Grand. Crowds are starting to shake cars. Scary! Thanks to #NewsAlpha4 for the feed. #staysafe #RamsHouse @KFIAM640 @ConwayShow @AngelOfTraffic pic.twitter.com/i78XWqyge4
— Angel Martinez (@ilvdbch) February 14, 2022
The dispersal order was issued in response to a combination of reports from media and officers describing rowdy behavior, LAPD Lt. Park said. The reports referenced fireworks going off in the crowd and vehicles doing donuts in the area. And a laser was being flashed at a helicopter overhead, Park said.
Celebrators were instructed to go either east on 11th and south on Hope. Media reports indicated that police fired less-than lethal projectiles to help clear the crowd.
Unruly crowds can be seen jumping on top of a bus while also vandalizing the front windshield. https://t.co/MQIDlXYBOB pic.twitter.com/3NmMYrs0QO
— CBS Los Angeles (@CBSLA) February 14, 2022
Broadcast and social media images later showed celebrants vandalizing a bus. And well over a dozen people were seen gathered around a man lighting the fuse to a mortar-style firework in one video posted on Twitter. Some in the crowd cheered while using their phones to record as the projectile ignited with a boom and rocketed toward a line of police standing several yards away.
Amid the commotion, officers in an LAPD helicopter spotted what appeared to be a break-in at a store near 6th Street and Broadway, Park said. Footage recorded near that intersection showed people walking out of the smashed front doors of a store and crawling under a security gate as sirens and popping noises were heard in the background. Police were summoned to respond, and were working to determine what if any crime had taken place there as of 11:20 p.m.
No arrests were immediately announced.
Crowd fighting over whether or not to launch a firework via mortar towards police. Mortar goes off? Less lethals deployed. pic.twitter.com/ajzvFjDifq
— Sean Beckner-Carmitchel (@ACatWithNews) February 14, 2022
Los Angeles police and firefighters had planned on having a heavy presence in downtown Los Angeles in the event of any sort of disturbance following the Super Bowl. Numerous fire trucks and ambulances had been pre-positioned in the area of the celebration that was broken up by officials, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey said. There were no immediate reports of any major fires, and no people in the crowd had to be taken to a hospital as of 10 p.m.
Several offramps of the 110 Freeway in the downtown area were shut down at the request of the LAPD in order to help them control traffic, California Highway Patrol officials said.