AMERICA— On August 8, three large gatherings were reported to have taken place in Portland, Oregon by the Portland Police Bureau.

The first two gatherings were reported as peaceful, so no interactions took place between civilians and the police.

The third large group consisted of a few hundred people. The gathering began as peaceful, with people marching towards the direction of the Portland Police Association (PPA) Office, illegally blocking traffic.

Once they arrived at the office, individuals committed multiple crimes including pushing dumpsters into the street, setting dumpsters on fire, vandalizing the PPA office with spray paint, destroying security cameras, and erecting a fence.

At 11:35 p.m., people within the crowd destroyed the windows of the PPA office, illegally entered, and started a fire inside. The large gathering was declared to be a riot.

Image of the fire inside the PPA office.

Portland Police tweeted “A riot was declared after a group broke into the @PPAVigil offices, started a fire, and continued to feed the fire more fuel. This is a terribly dangerous situation. Officers moved the crowd so the fire could be extinguished before it could grow out of control.”

The police gave multiple public announcements ordering all people to disperse. This included members of the press and legal observers.

When the Oregon State Police and Portland Police attempted to disperse the crowd, individuals threw glass bottles and paint balloons at them and shined lasers in their eyes.

The rioters also built barricades with street closure signs, picnic tables, and other materials which they would hide behind while throwing objects at officers.

At 1:14 a.m., the police made announcement that they were closing Kenton Park because activity remained riotous.

By 2:00 a.m., a majority of the rioters had left the area. Portland Fire and Rescue successfully put out the fire.

Three officers suffered injuries and two were taken to the hospital. Nine arrests were made during the riot.