New Hampshire Pumpkin Festival Devolves into Riot: VIDEO




10/19/2014 AT 01:30 PM EDT



This obviously isn't New Hampshire's most sincere pumpkin patch.

Police in riot gear used tear gas and pepper spray to disperse a large crowd at Keene, New Hampshire's 24th annual Pumpkin Festival Saturday night, according to CNN. Dozens of individuals were arrested, and ambulances were summoned to deal with myriad injuries.


"State and local public safety officials are on the scene and have been working closely together to defuse the situation," Gov. Maggie Hassan said a statement. "We will continue to monitor the situation and provide any assistance necessary to Keene."

It's unclear at which point during the evening things took a turn, but there were reports of people being struck by flying bottles, and attendees traded insults with the police, started fires and overturned cars.


"It's just like a rush," Steven French, 18, told The Keene Sentinel Saturday night. "You're revolting from the cops. It's a blast to do things that you're not supposed to do," he added, describing the night's events as "wicked."


Last year's pumpkin festival set a world record by lighting 30,581 jack-o-lanterns. To be fair, that's a hard act to follow.






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