“Boy, that escalated quickly. I mean, that really got out of hand fast.”
In an event that is a stunning testament to the power of social media, a house party at a mansion in Ontario, Canada turned into a flood of people that nearly brought the house down, literally.
Police estimate that, at the height of the event, there were as many as 1,500 people packed into the 5,000-square-foot mansion under construction. In the ensuing melee, people began to wreck the place, causing $70,000 worth of damage.
Apparently the party started off intentionally and innocently enough. The homeowner’s son invited people to the site. But news of the party at the mansion went viral on Twitter with the hashtag #MansionParty. That’s when all hell broke loose.
“There was just kids coming in packs of 10, 20, literally no room to walk in the house,” said a neighbor.
Concerned neighbors saw the disaster as it was happening and called area police, but by the time they arrived, over 200 cars were lined up down the street from the mansion.
“There was a potential, a real potential for something to happen something deadly,” said Thomas Ruttan with Peel Regional Police.
"@TheRealDjSkelly: The #MansionParty is looking really reckless pic.twitter.com/fodbacjedx" #WOW
— StreetHistory.com (@streethistory) May 4, 2014
Windows were broken out, stair rails were torn down, and the grounds around the house were strewn with beer cans and cellphones.
As police tried to control the crowd and vacate the house, they say they were assaulted by teens, resulting in arrests. Teens were taking pictures of themselves around the police cruisers at the scene and tweeting them.
One tweeter said he saw someone beaten with a ball bat, saw a star rail being pulled down, and SWAT team members pointing guns at people.
#MansionParty pic.twitter.com/oBlYiykTmn
— ★ (@matt_fiorillo) May 3, 2014
#mansionparty !! pic.twitter.com/KLZWq1sLui
— May 7th (@AnnieCranston) May 3, 2014
Image via Twitter