Hope Karnopp
More than 80 people were arrested Saturday at the annual Mifflin Street Block Party in Madison, where partygoers flipped over a car and a deck failed, according to the Madison Police Department.
Around 2:30 p.m., police and the Madison Fire Department responded to a first-floor porch with boards that broke under the weight of the occupants. No one was injured, and the number of people on the porch isn't known.
Shortly after, a red car was flipped over, though no one was injured. Another car in the area was also damaged, police said. Crowds thinned after police started clearing backyards after the incident.
The fire department was also alerted to a downed power line, which Madison Gas and Electric determined was a low-voltage communications wire.
In all, more than 80 people were arrested Saturday, mostly for minor, alcohol-related offenses, police said. Six were booked into the Dane County Jail. Police plan to issue final citation numbers later this week.
A driver was not cited after hitting an officer who was working a traffic post. The officer was taken to a hospital to be evaluated for minor injuries.
EMS responded to 14 medical emergencies, with 11 resulting in transports to the hospital, mostly related to alcohol.
The Mifflin Street Block Party, which is held off the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus and is attended mostly by college students, dates back over 50 years. It began as a political protest against the Vietnam War.
Officers reported this was the largest year for the block party since the Covid-19 pandemic started. Thousands of people attended the party, which is held along two blocks. The party wrapped up around 5:40 p.m. when rain moved into the area.
In 2021, revelers stood on an SUV and smashed through the car's windows, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. And in 2022, a rotted beam caused a balcony collapse that injured three people.
Building inspectors checked on houses along the street since February, identifying 24 porches, balconies or other areas that needed repairs. Only a few of those areas still needed repairs two days before the party, police said.
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