New York State Parks Department officials said New York Parks Police, New York State Police and New York Parks Rangers had additional patrols at both Jones Beach and Robert Moses State Park ahead of the weekend.
"This is crazy, everything is out of control and there should be some kind of punishment," Corona resident Naydelin Moreno said.
Police said the teens came from several high schools in Queens and Nassau County for the unsanctioned event after a flyer that circulated on social media brought them together.
State Parks officials said law enforcement is monitoring all social media for any other unsanctioned events to ensure there's an appropriate police presence ready.
“I think it’s awful," Floral Park resident Lala Esteves said. "They put it on social media and then everybody comes.“
New York State Police said crowds began to gather around 3 p.m. Thursday.
New York State Park Police, New York State Police and Nassau County Police said the situation escalated into several fights shortly before 6:30 p.m. Parks officials said the beach was cleared by 8:30 p.m.
"To have fights like that it's not a good thing," Seaford resident George Cibery said.
According to Nassau County police, four people had minor injuries from those fights. They were all treated and released, officials said.
Nassau County police arrested Kyle Thomas, 18, after they said he lifted his shirt and displayed the handle of what appeared to be a firearm in his waistband. Police said it was ultimately an imitation handgun.
The Valley Stream resident was charged with menacing and disorderly conduct, issued a ticket and is scheduled to go before a judge at First District Court in Hempstead on June 27.
The unruly scenes at Jones Beach came after
Long Beach police preemptively shut down its beach last Friday, May 30, to prevent crowds of teens from gathering for their 'Senior Cut Day' last week. That move was made to avoid the chaos of previous years, including a
2024 incident in which a teenager was shot during an out-of-control gathering involving approximately 2,000 teens.