ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WIVB)- As thousands of people descended on New Era Field to tailgate and enjoy a Bills win, Orchard Park Police got more than 100 calls for fires, fights, drunkenness and heat exhaustion. County officials said they received the highest number of EMS calls in years.
“We also had a significant increase in accidents,” said Police Chief Mark Pacholec.
Two people were arrested for leaving the scene of a crash.
In one case, police told News 4 a driver ran away after causing a crash in the O’Neill’s parking lot. The driver had a blood alcohol content of 0.2.
Fifteen minutes later on Southwestern Blvd., police said a vehicle hit multiple cars, narrowly missing a pedestrian. The driver of that vehicle had a BAC of 0.3.
“This is a question of behavior,” said Chief Pacholec. “People need to behave, people need to act appropriately and make sure they’re safe to drive.”
The weekend of the home opener, police arrested 11 people, charging two other drivers with the scene of a crash.
In one instance, the driver had a BAC of .25.
“There’s always 10 percent of the people that just aren’t going to follow the rules,” said Chief Pacholec.
Matt Fisher, who has lived in the neighborhood next to the stadium for 10 years told News 4 police need to crack down.
“I think there’s too much of it, I don’t think they’re doing anything to stop it,” said Fisher. “The Sheriffs are out there doing nothing but waving traffic on, not looking for any problems at all unless something that’s just unbelievable happens in front of them,” said Fisher.
He also wants to see more patrols to prevent fans from urinating on people’s properties, walking through their yards and leaving a mess behind.
“I’d like them to crack down a lot,” said Fisher.
Other neighbors we talked to said they do see police patrolling the neighborhoods.
Chief Pacholec said they’ve increased the number of officers around during games through local, state and federal partnerships. He told us it’s led to fewer arrests.
