TOMS RIVER, NJ – Large crowds of unruly teens, 90 arrested in Seaside Heights, fights along the boardwalks, the smell of marijuana drenching the air, a stabbing in Ocean City, and a disaster declaration in Wildwood.
According to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, there’s nothing to see here.
Murphy, who spent his weekend at his governor’s mansion in Island Beach State Park said this weekend was a huge success for the state.
Despite the imagery on news broadcasts across the country showing teens running scared, cops running down the boardwalk with ‘assault rifles’, fights, arrests, and yes, a teen stabbing, things were good.
“The Shore did not have a chaotic weekend,” he said. “There were three very serious incidents. But this was overwhelmingly a huge Memorial Day. [We] take all of those incidents very, very seriously, as I know the communities do.” He noted he personally spoke with the mayors of all three towns.”
Seaside Heights Mayor Anthony Vaz today said many shopkeepers along the boardwalk voluntarily shut their doors because of the threat of violence.
“The weekend was overwhelmingly successful, including overwhelmingly in those towns,” he said. “I was on a couple hours ago with the Wildwood mayor, and he said, ‘We had a fantastic weekend. We happened to have this overrunning of a bunch of teenagers.’”
Murphy predicted this summer is going to be the “biggest summer ever.”