In anticipation of the controversial Orange Crush festival this weekend, Tybee Island is ramping up security measures. The festival’s return has raised concerns, especially in light of recent unpermitted teen gatherings that have turned chaotic.
“We want to assure everyone that public safety is our top priority,” stated Capt. Emory Randolph of the Tybee Island Police Department, responding to residents’ worries about the upcoming events during a conversation with Fox News Digital.
In a Tuesday Facebook post, Tybee Island police highlighted the rise of “teen takeovers” happening nationwide. “This trend became all too real for us recently when an unauthorized beach event was abruptly halted by gunfire,” they wrote. “With Crush Reloaded on the horizon, community members both locally and online are voicing their concerns.”
This increased vigilance comes in response to these widespread “teen takeover” incidents, which hit close to home last week with gunfire at an unauthorized beach party on the island.
The Tybee Island Police Department, alongside the Georgia State Police, will be actively patrolling during the Orange Crush festival to ensure safety. (Photo by Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News/USA Today Network)
The police are actively collaborating with state and local agencies to prepare for the Crush Reloaded weekend.
Residents, police said, can expect a heavy law enforcement presence starting Thursday from the Georgia State Patrol to local Sheriff’s offices, supported by K-9 units and helicopters.
To maintain order, police are also launching a road safety checkpoint on Highway 80, carving out emergency lanes on main roads and shuttering the 14th and 16th Street parking lots.
WATCH: Teen takeover erupts in Georgia
The move came as nationwide teen takeover events are spreading. Last week, a mass of teens participating in a takeover on Tybee Island, Georgia, was interrupted in panic after police say gunfire broke out along the pier.
According to the Tybee Island Police Department, authorities responded around 6:30 p.m. on April 4, when hundreds of people gathered near the Tybee Island Pier and Pavilion area, a popular spot in the laid-back beach community.
During the course of the “unpermitted, pop-up event,” officers said they heard a single gunshot ring out, and the crowd began to scatter.
Video shared by the department captured hoards of teens running away.
Orange Crush attendees at past events have littered parts of Tybee Island’s beach with trash in the sand and in the water. (Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News/USA TODAY NETWORK)
Visitors on the island who were nearby when it happened said the scene turned chaotic.
“Out there were like 15 girls. Came out yelling at us two last night for no reason,” the visitors, who asked not to be identified, told WTOC-TV.
“We were here, but, like, it was like, drunk white girls. Just a cloud of white girls just walking around.”
Festival goers run from the stage after someone yelled that a gun was seen on Saturday, April 19, 2025 during Orange Crush on Tybee Island. (© Richard Burkhart/ Savannah Morning News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
In the early 1990s, Orange Crush had a reputation for being a wild, crime-filled weekend, and Savannah State University disassociated with the event in 1991 because of the high number of arrests and reports of violence.
Three years ago, the event moved to Jacksonville, Florida, “due to lack of resources, limited parking, civil rights violations and political injustices,” according to a June 2021 story on Jacksonville.com, which cited the event’s website. The website has since been taken down.
The event returned to Tybee Island in 2023 for the first time since 2020.
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