ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - While downtown was quiet with little to no violent crime over the weekend, there was a lot of noise in several St. Louis neighborhoods caused by drag racing and cars spinning-out and burning rubber.
Public Safety Director Dan Isom says a coordinated event called Circle STL drew up to 500 drivers from around the region. They spread out after being broken up by a police SWAT unit at Grand Avenue and Natural Bridge Road. The reckless drivers were also seen in "Jeff-Vander-Lou Neighborhood, Midtown, The Gate District, Lafayette Square, Downtown West, Downtown, Fairground, and the area of Riverview and I-270," according to Isom.
"The behavior that this group engaged in was dangerous and it greatly taxed the responding officers all night," Isom says.
One St. Louis resident shared video and photos of the intersection of Jefferson and Shenandoah Avenues in south city packed with people watching cars burnout and doing doughnuts in an intersection.
The man who posted the videos says he called police multiple times, but they never showed up.
Isom says police issued about 20 summons and made a couple of arrests. He says they'll be monitoring social media to prevent another similar gathering in the future.
He is also urging the public not to take part in such events, because they take police away from life-threatening situations.
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