New Rules For Spring Breakers In South Florida

Spring Break in South Florida is upon us, and because last year’s spring break was especially bad, police have tried to stay ahead of by imposing new rules. In March 2022, the rowdiness led local authorities to use crowd control measures, enforce curfews and conduct mass arrests. DUI’s and car accidents also saw a rise, with personal injury claims filed at a higher number than previous years.

This year, police are imposing new rules to ensure public safety. Here is the list of prohibitions and advice from Major Bill Schultz of police department operations:

• Alcohol: Possessing or providing it to people 21 and under is forbidden. “It’s obviously strictly prohibited. It will be enforced by uniformed and uncover FL PD officers.” Open containers of alcohol “anywhere outside of an establishment is prohibited on Fort Lauderdale Beach both on the sand and on the sidewalks in the area.”

• Fraudulent IDs: Possessing them and presenting them to a bar or restaurant is illegal.

• Public indecency and disturbances: “Anything that is going to disrupt the enjoyable environment on the beach is prohibited and will be closely monitored by us.”

• Disallowed items according to park rules: Tents, tables or amplified music on the beach.

• Safety and crime prevention. “There is safety in groups. Always look out for everyone in your group. If you are traveling together, make sure that you stay together. Always watch your drink, your purse, your cellphone or all of your personal belongings. If you set them down or your friends set them down, remind them pick that up. Don’t leave anything unattended.”

• Ride Shares: Use the information on the phone application to “match the driver’s photo, the license, the make and model of the car to what’s on your phone.”

• Bar Watch Program: It’s back this year in the form of business-sized cards that imbibing visitors can use to test their beverages for drugs such as Ketomine or GHB that can lead to sexual assaults. “We’ll be distributing those [cards] to the bars and to individuals in the coming weeks,” Schultz said.

Authorities also addressed the fentanyl epidemic, noting that they will be equipped with Narcan, a brand-name version of naloxone, an opioid overdose treatment, to aid victims of fentanyl, which has led to thousands of deaths a year around the nation.