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LOGAN TOWNSHIP, N.J. - Police in Logan Township are providing new information about an unauthorized event involving thousands of people at a motorsports park that quickly spiraled into chaos on Sunday, causing an emergency alert notice to light up phones across Gloucester County.
What we know:
Officers from the Logan Township Police Department responded to Bridgeport Motosports Park around 11 a.m. Sunday for reports of people speeding, passing unsafely, racing, and riding on their vehicles.
Investigators say police soon learned about an unauthorized vehicle meet-up at the motorsports park called "Import Expo." The event "rapidly became inundated with motorists from as far away as Massachusetts and Virginia."
As the crowd at the event continued to swell, police say the park quickly exceeded its capacity, causing an estimated 25,000 people to leave their cars "wherever they chose to" and walk to the venue.
Police from neighboring departments responded to the motorsports park to help with traffic and crowd control.
The small, rural two-lane Repaupo Station Road in Logan Township, leading up to Bridgeport Motorsports Park, was jammed with cars and people, as well as police.
An Emergency Alert ordering individuals to disperse was sent out by the Gloucester County Office of Emergency Management. The order was lifted just before 7 p.m.
Police say there were multiple reports of public intoxication, public urination, lewdness, disorderly conduct, littering, and numerous fights. One person was taken into custody.
What they're saying:
The owner of Bridgeport Motorsports Park, in a Facebook post, offered an apology for the incident and an explanation of how they responded to shut down the event.
"The overall problem was traffic that spread throughout," they wrote, adding that they helped police shut down Floodgate Road and turned away attendees once they realized how overcrowded the event had become.
"In just a short time we realized folks were parking elsewhere and walking their way to the event," the post continued. "At that time, enough was enough and we decided to begin the process of shutting down the event."
"All of the sudden I got a photo from my neighbor from up the street showing I had 100 people in my driveway and people were all over this road with nowhere to go," says Bob Pyle, a neighbor. "Everyone was on their porches just wondering what’s going on?"
Cedarvale Winery also had a front row view.
"It was backed up all the way to 295, the event started at 12 and the line was still out here the entire day basically," said Andrew Gaventa, a co-owner. "A little notification would’ve helped a good amount. We had to shut down."
Volunteers at the speedway that helped to clean-up leftover trash on Monday said the outside event had nothing to do with the family-friendly races they’re known for.
"They gotta vet out the promoters better, because I really don’t think the speedway owners were aware of how big this thing was going to get, and by the time they realized it, it was much too late," says Pyle.
Police would not comment on why the emergency alert reached people well outside the township.
FOX 29 reached out to Import Expo for a statement, and we will bring you their response once we receive it.
What we don't know:
Investigators have not commented on the origins of the event.