200 riders on dirt bikes, e-bikes and bikes swarm streets of Tampa

Hundreds of bikers swarm South Tampa streets

There was chaos on two wheels Wednesday night as Tampa Police say a massive group of riders?on bicycles, dirt bikes, e-bikes, and scooters?took over streets in South Tampa, weaving through traffic, running red lights, riding against the flow of cars, and blocking intersections. Aaron Mesmer reports.

TAMPA - There was chaos on two wheels Wednesday night as Tampa Police say a massive group of riders—on bicycles, dirt bikes, e-bikes, and scooters—took over streets in South Tampa, weaving through traffic, running red lights, riding against the flow of cars, and blocking intersections.

What we know:

The incident lasted more than 45 minutes, with the Tampa Police Department tracking the group from the air and ground. Video captured from a police helicopter showed riders performing stunts like wheelies and ignoring traffic signals.

Police say the group crowded cars, took over sidewalks, and swerved in and out of lanes, creating a dangerous situation for everyone on the road.

On the ground, witnesses were stunned.

"They just kept on coming and coming and coming, and then traffic would stop and then there were more coming and coming," said Aaron Williams, who was working at Fine Ink Tattoo Studio in South Tampa during the ride.

Williams said it seemed like there were more than the 200 police reported.

"Easy, a couple of hundred, maybe like 500 of them, were rolling through here," he said, adding the riders to think about their safety and the safety of others. "It’s awesome that they were riding, but just be safe and just be smart and just remember you’re not the only one out there on the road," Williams said.

Another resident in the South Howard neighborhood added the type of behavior is, "Not safe at all. Usually they’re not wearing helmets and certainly going the wrong way doesn’t help anyone’s chances of, you know, not getting hurt."

By the numbers:

Police arrested four individuals, with another arrest pending, and issued seven citations. Riders ranged in age from 16 to 29. While many pulled over when signaled by officers, others fled or hid.

Maj. Les Richardson of the Tampa Police Department described the event as highly reckless.

"When you start riding against the lanes of travel, you start running through red lights, you’re disregarding the drivers next to you or even taking actions into their lane of travel. It becomes a reckless manner," Richardson said.

Dig deeper:

This isn't the first time Tampa has seen such behavior. Earlier this year, police cracked down on bicyclists riding recklessly along Tampa’s Riverwalk.

Unlike the street takeovers involving cars where intersections are intentionally blocked for stunts, Richardson said not every rider in this incident appeared to be deliberately causing havoc.

"Not everyone was trying to cause havoc, some were just riding with the pack, and pulled over when we arrived. Their actions dictated their charges," Richardson said.

Still, police say the group posed a serious danger.

"I mean even though the bikers are paying attention, that doesn't mean everybody else is paying attention and I mean it could easily be a problem real quick," Williams added.

Big picture view:

Police believe social media may have played a role in organizing the ride.

"Social media is huge for us, and we’ll continue to pry into that as best as we can to get the right answers that we need to make sure we’re addressing the right things and charging accordingly," Richardson said.

What's next:

Some riders got away, but police are reviewing hours of helicopter footage to identify more suspects.

"This one just got away from us, but we dealt with it effectively and safely," said Richardson. "We still have a lot more to identify, but we’re going to work hard on that."

Police urge drivers to remain calm if caught in a similar situation, avoid cutting riders off, and not engage with them.