PANAMA CITY BEACH — Spring Break has a certain rhythm to its chaos.
Large crowds simultaneously shift from lazing on the beach to crowding into the nightclubs and then heading back home at the night’s end.
In addition to numerous officers on the ground level, law enforcement also relies on an eye in the sky to determine where potential crowd issues might develop and advise routes to approach the source of a crowd’s unrest.
From the sky, the multitudes of spring breakers seem more like ant colonies scurrying along the waterline to their various destinations, some with greater numbers than others.
Lt. Larry Kennedy has been head of the Bay County Sheriff’s Office aviation unit for 15 years. He and two other officers are responsible for monitoring the movements of Spring Break traffic with routine helicopter patrols during high volume times.
“When crowds build up in places they don’t normally build up, that usually means trouble,” Kennedy said Friday afternoon. “Whatever we can see from the air, we report back to the deputies.”
Hours after The News Herald took a helicopter tour of the Beach on Friday, seven people were shot at what authorities said was a Spring Break house party.
During the Spring Break season, the aviation unit is not only used to track crowd movements or hone in on a suspect’s location during a nighttime foot hunt. They are also on the lookout for people climbing condominium balconies and people distressed in the Gulf of Mexico.
One of the most monumental Spring Breaks in Kennedy’s memory was a couple of years ago when rip currents caused about 130 near-drownings. So many swimmers were in trouble that Kennedy had to use the chopper to pull 15 people to safety.
“I had two helicopters out there at the same time, and that’s rare,” he said.
Spring Break isn’t the only time the chopper is gassed up and ready to go. On all major holidays, like Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, aviation crews perform regular patrols and stand ready to lend a hugely beneficial vantage point.
For the most part, Spring Break is the most unpredictable despite the rhythm of the mass comings and goings. However, law enforcement’s role in the hectic annual event remains the same day in and day out.
“We’re mostly just trying to keep these kids from hurting themselves,” Kennedy said.