04/19/04

Ames, Iowa - A yearly festival near the Iowa State University campus turned riotous early Sunday when more than 1,000 people vandalized cars, broke storefront windows and tore down street lights, police said.

Officers broke up the crowd with tear gas and arrested about 30 people on charges ranging from disorderly conduct to assaulting a police officer.

About 20 people received treatment for minor injuries at a hospital, mainly for skin and eye irritations from the tear gas.

There were no estimates of property damage, but police said the damage was extensive.

Officers responded to a call around midnight that a group of people at the annual student-organized Veishea celebration was getting out of hand and arrived to find a crowd of several hundred people flowing into the street.

People from the crowd began throwing bottles and cans at police, and yelling "Riot, riot!" police said. Festival-goers tore down street lights and road signs, set trash bins on fire, rolled parked cars and broke windows, police said.

Police used tear gas, but the crowd did not break up until around 5:30 a.m.

The Veishea celebration, begun in 1922, is an acronym contrived from the names of various schools at the university.