AMI first responders described the four-day July 4 holiday as a booming success without busts.
“It was a really good, smooth-running Fourth of July,” Lt. Lenard Diaz of the Bradenton Beach Police Department said July 10. “Our busiest day was July 4 and then Friday and Saturday. Sunday was not even a full beach.”
Diaz reported no issues related to public parking but police did assist with medical emergencies over the holiday, responding to two cardiac incidents that occurred within minutes of each other — one south of Tower 11 at Coquina Beach and the other on the beach near 11th Street North. Both people were transported by Manatee County Emergency Medical Services to HCA Florida Blake Hospital in Bradenton, where, according to Diaz, one died.
Diaz said other EMS calls in Bradenton Beach over the weekend were due to the heat.
“I would say 90% of our issues out at the beach, when EMS gets called, it’s heat exhaustion,” he said.
Diaz said BBPD’s marine unit worked the holiday, alternating patrols between Sarasota Bay and the Gulf with no citations written.
In Holmes Beach, police Chief Bill Tokajer called the holiday “crazy busy.”
“I think we had more cars coming to the island than we’ve ever seen in one day,” he said.
Tokajer said in the 24-hour period of July 4, more than 35,000 vehicles were driven onto the island via Manatee Avenue.
“We had some fights over parking and some fights over grill spots,” Tokajer said. However, he added, officers resolved the disputes in short order.
“We had a lot of people that decided they didn’t care where they parked,” Tokajer said. “We had people that parked in the roadways blocking traffic, even at the beach parking lot. We had people who parked at the ends of the beach aisles making their own spots.”
“If we could have gotten a tow truck out there, we probably would have towed over 12 cars,” he continued.
HBPD also responded to complaints about fireworks but no citations were given.
Code enforcement officers in the city also worked the holiday. Over the weekend, sea turtle hatchlings emerged from a nest but crawled away from the Gulf. Tokajer said new construction might have caused the disorientation.
The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office worked with Bradenton Beach and Holmes Beach police over the holiday. The MSCO is contracted to fill Anna Maria’s law enforcement needs with deputies, special response teams and marine patrol but also assists in the other cities.
U.S. Coast Guard public information officer Santiago Gomez said Station Cortez had six boardings and two written warnings but no major events.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission also had patrols on the water, part of Operation Dry Water carried out with the Coast Guard and other agencies. Their mission was to reduce the number of alcohol- and drug-related incidents and promote overall boating safety awareness.
As of Islander press time July 15, the FWC did not provide local numbers but statewide they cited more than 1,000 vessel operators for safety violations, issued more than 4,000 safety warnings and removed 55 vessel operators from the water for allegedly boating under the influence.