14 DAY TRIAL // A riot broke out in the Netherlands after a girl sent out too many invites to her birthday party. 3,000 people came to the party in Haren, after confirmations from over 30,000 users were received on Facebook.
16-year-old Merthe Weusthuis didn't mark the event as private, but she never expected it to gain such popularity. 240,000 people had seen her invite, after an unauthorized user set up a website promoting the party and a Twitter account that received clicks by the hundreds of thousands.
Partygoers were calling the event Party Project X, inspired by the Hollywood production Project X. Some people had arrived in Haren wearing “Project X Haren” emblazoned T-shirts referencing the party in the big budget film.
Just like in the famous movie, the party started a riot, after 3,000 people showed up in a small town of only 18,000. The incident occurred on Friday afternoon, and those involved had been getting ready for it for a week. Some had traveled overseas just to get to the small party in the town 185 kilometers (115 miles) from Amsterdam.
According to the Telegraph, six people were hurt in the northern Dutch town. Some 500 riot police officers had to be called at the scene, wearing helmets, shields and batons, and at least 20 arrests were made.
Her home, as well as town shops, was vandalized and looted. Lamp posts and street signs were tore down after the event went viral. A car was reportedly set on fire before police could break crowds apart.
Clashes started between drunk partygoers and police forces called in to put an end to the event. The 16-year-old young woman that was celebrating her birthday had to be evacuated from her home, along with her family.
Robert Bats, mayor of the town of Haren, described the teens that attended the party as vandals, media outlets reported.
“Scum ran amok in our town. An innocent invitation on Facebook for a party led to serious rioting, destruction, plundering, arson and injuries in the middle of Haren,” he said.
