As Brandon "DJ B-Funk" Thompson took to the Lokoween stage late Saturday night, he began his set with an emergency broadcast to the thousands of partygoers who had flocked to Court Street in search of a bit of Halloween mischief.
“Warning. This is a message from the emergency broadcast system,” a voice from the stage’s speakers said. “All dancing is now legal for the next 24 hours.”
And dance they did — from Court Street to Palmer and just about everywhere in between. Droves of Harley Quinns with red and blue pigtails, several Donald Trumps and Victoria’s Secret Angels gathered Uptown in their costumes for the 42nd annual Halloween Block Party.
Others in attendance, however, arrived with a more sobering attitude.
“This is not real,” one person's sign read. “I am glad you are here.”
The individual was Nick Kreager, a 2007 Ohio University grad, who walked the length of Court Street wearing a black cloak and with his face painted as a skull.
“What we’re experiencing as stardust and meatsuits feels real,” Kreager said. “It doesn’t give us licenses to treat each other like s--t. This is a dream we’re all having, and we need to wake up.”
By the time the festivities had come to an end around 2:45 a.m., EMS had responded to 37 calls for service, resulting in 26 people being transported to O’Bleness Memorial Hospital.
The Athens Police Department made 35 arrests over the course of the evening, most of which were alcohol-related, with the exception of one theft and one obstruction charge, according to a news release.
Meanwhile, the Ohio University Police Department issued 69 citations as of 3 a.m. Sunday, and sent 18 individuals to the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail. According to a news release from APD, there were two assaults on OUPD officers, as well as one incident of obstructing a law enforcement officer.
The Ohio Department of Public Safety Investigative Unit, which also sent officers to the party, charged approximately 50 people Saturday night, in addition to 11 people on Friday. Though most offenses were alcohol-related, there were two felony drug arrests made by the unit, according to the news release.
Despite a vast improvement in weather compared to last year’s block party, when rain sent partygoers home early, some younger attendees admitted they expected more from their first Halloween at OU.
“I heard it was lit, but I’m kind of disappointed,” Meriah Woolery, an undecided freshman, said. “It’s more low-key than I thought it would be. It’s more like a regular party.”
For visiting students, however, a trip to Athens proved to be an opportunity to experience the famous block party in all its rumored glory. Kristen Nicholl, who visited from Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, arrived with her friends, all dressed as characters from the Netflix series Stranger Things.
“I’ve wanted to come to HallOUween for the past two years to see what it’s like — to see what it’s all about,” Nicholl said. “And wow. I mean, talk about people-watching.”
With the Cleveland Indians in the middle of Game 4 of the World Series as the festivities played out, many students made their way to the bars early to catch a few moments of the action. On multiple occasions, chants of “Let’s go, Tribe!” could be heard traveling across Court Street.
By about 2:30 a.m., as the crowd on Court Street had dwindled, police made a final push to clear the streets for the night, creating a wall of mounted officers near the State Street intersection to “sweep” partygoers southward to Union Street.
While some revelers were audibly upset that the party was over, Rob Everard, a senior at Bowling Green State University, expressed his support for officers, who directed pedestrians down alleyways and side-streets as they made their way down Court Street.
“I mean, I’m gonna be honest, like come on. They’re adults. We’re adults,” Everard said. “They’re just trying to keep us f--king safe. We’re just trying to have fun.”
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the name of Cincinnati State Technical and Community College. The article has been updated to reflect the most accurate information.
