Hot Town, Summer in the City
isn’t it a pity
[Alton, Ill.] ...a firetruck was dispatched to [the Oakwood Housing Complex to] extinguish a Dumpster fire in the 700 block of Oakwood and was immediately attacked by the crowd shooting and throwing fireworks at them.
...reports stated that in the past, fires have been set to “lure the fire department out so they could be attacked by fireworks.”
...When officers arrived, they too were attacked “by the mob” with bottle rockets thrown from behind buildings.
...Officers left when firefighters were able to extinguish the Dumpster fire but quickly returned to the housing complex because of reports of people shot or injured in the 800 block of Oakwood. Police did not find anyone injured but again were attacked by fireworks and again deployed pepper-ball guns to prevent attacks.
...Officers were attacked a third time in the 700 block of Oakwood when they responded to reports of a truck fire; that turned out to be a box on fire. Officers had to leave when their pepper-ball guns were out of ammunition.
...At 12:29 a.m. July 5, police and fire personnel again were dispatched to the Oakwood Housing complex for a Dumpster fire in the 800 block of Oakwood. Officers were attacked with bottle rockets and again deployed pepper-ball guns.
... said Alton Police Chief David Hayes. “This type of conduct is not supposed to happen in civil society. This was obviously intended to be entertainment for the crowd."
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