A group of e-bikers near the Hermosa Beach Pier sent late-night revelers rushing after setting off illegal fireworks into the crowded entertainment district Saturday.
According to authorities with the Hermosa Beach Police Department, the incident happened around 8:30 p.m. near Hermosa and Pier avenues.
Footage from the incident captured a large illegal fireworks display on the beach, near a lifeguard station. Just later, a half-dozen e-bike riders, all of whom appear to be minors, are seen walking away from the explosion and toward a crowded area of Pier Avenue lined with bars, restaurants and other stores.
The E-bikers stop and form a small melee before several of them break away and another sets off illegal fireworks onto the crowded stage.
A family with three young children who were nearby was sent running when the explosion fired fireworks into the crowd, hitting several people.
Authorities told KTLA there were several minor injuries, but none required hospitalization.
According to the Instagram account South.bay.responders, the fireworks were lit right next to the terrace of the Sharkeez bar, prompting customers to evacuate. The account also claimed that a woman was hit in the face by a firework and that the window of the Baked Bear restaurant was also hit.
Hermosa Beach officials have attempted to control and regulate e-bikes.
At a June 4 special meeting, the Hermosa Beach City Council passed an emergency ordinance regulating off-road electric bikes, which have exploded in popularity in recent years.
South Bay residents have recently expressed concern about unruly teenagers roaming city streets recklessly, usually in large groups along the beaches of Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach near the piers.
“Most of the time what I see is [them] going at breakneck speeds and traveling in big bands,” Greg, a Hermosa Beach resident, told KTLA. “It’s almost like there’s this little child energy that they don’t necessarily follow the rules.”
“I wish they would have stopped at the stop signs,” he added. “I’m always afraid of cutting a 12-year-old.”
In a May 22 incident, miners damaged a mural and other areas of Hermosa Beach; Three days later, officers issued a citation to the minor and his guardian before impounding the e-bike.
As for the juveniles involved in Saturday night’s incident, police told KTLA several of them were briefly detained before being released to their parents.