HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — On Saturday, the Gasparilla Pirate Invasion will be underway in Tampa. Thousands of people will be on Bayshore Boulevard to watch it all happen.
Gasparilla comes with a lot of excitement for people in the Tampa Bay area, but it's an all-hands-on-deck effort for law enforcement.
Tampa police remind those attending — if you see something, say something.
You can text the word SAFE TAMPA to 847411 if you see something suspicious.
Officers are working to make sure the pirates are the only ones up to no good.
“We will have an aviation asset in the air for the entire flotilla and parade period," Chief Pilot Chris Shephard said.
First responders will be in the sky, the water, and on the ground. They will also be in the real-time crime center.
“We are constantly monitoring crowd behaviors. Even though you might not get the full picture with the video, we can get enough to then have units dispatched to an area to take a look at something,” Captain Rich Blasiolo with Tampa Police said.
Operators can see surveillance footage and relay any information to officers on the ground. Tampa police also installed additional cameras throughout downtown to have eyes on everything during Gasparilla.
“Any large-scale event we have, we do build-outs. We have temporary installations specific to certain areas of concern,” Captain Blasiolo said.
Tampa Police feel prepared for the big event. They want to remind you to pick a meeting spot for your group in case you get separated.
