ORLANDO, Fla. – Rolling Loud is back in Orlando this weekend, and police say they’re preparing for one of the city’s biggest events of the year.
The three-day hip-hop festival at Camping World Stadium is expected to draw up to 65,000 people at its only U.S. stop, according to organizers.
Orlando police and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office are setting up a special event zone for the weekend and deploying hundreds of officers inside and outside the stadium.
“Being that it is the first time, we’ll see how this event goes,” Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith said. “We will have a large presence. We will not tolerate people breaking the law, period. If it comes down to that, we will make an arrest.”
Police are also setting up a special event zone stretching along Orange Blossom Trail from State Road 408 to Pine Hills along Colonial Drive. In that zone, fines will be doubled from Thursday night through Monday morning, police said.
“We don’t want people to become victims or have problems in the parking lots. We don’t want shootings in the parking lots,” Smith said. “We’ll have response teams out there, so if you see anything suspicious, please call it in.”
Smith said OPD’s Direct Action Response Team will be positioned nearby to respond specifically to Rolling Loud so officers aren’t pulled away from their regular duties.
“See something, say something is always an important message,” said Emily Ockenden, Rolling Loud’s senior production director.
Organizers gave a tour of Tinker Field ahead of the event but did not share specific details about security measures. They encouraged fans to look out for each other.
“If you see someone who is in trouble, flag down security, medical staff, or someone with a radio. We will always help,” Ockenden said.
OPD said marked and unmarked units will be out all weekend and officers will be ready to respond to suspicious activity or emergencies.