BURLESON COUNTY, Texas (KRHD) — Local law enforcement agencies are stepping up security and traffic enforcement as more than 20,000 people are expected to attend the annual Chilifest music festival in Snook this weekend.
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The event brings tens of thousands of people to Burleson County each year to raise funds for local non-profits, but officials say the large crowds also bring safety concerns.
"Last year we encountered some, let's just call it, disorderly conduct, you know, throwing empties, flipping tables, arguing with volunteers, staff, so on and so forth," Burleson County Public Information Officer Randy Jackson said.
To protect the community, local agencies are taking extra precautions.
"We've partnered up with College Station in Brazos County. They're going to be watching the kids going back to College Station," Jackson said.
"There's gonna be a lot of DPS troopers out working the streets looking for people driving impaired, and they will be strictly enforced," Burleson County Sheriff Bill Rios said.
"We're going to have undercover officers that are going to be in the crowd," Rios added.
Snook police will also keep a close eye on traffic and drivers throughout the weekend.
"The main thing I'm preparing for is gonna be traffic violators. So, I'm gonna be patrolling the neighborhoods," Snook Police Chief Steven Huron said.
Event organizers said the extra protection puts their team at ease.
"Our job is definitely to have fun, but safety is definitely first," Chilifest President Canton Dunnigan said.
"We want everyone to have fun, but there's definitely some don'ts, and, you know, acting a fool is definitely one of them," Dunnigan said.
Officials emphasized that safety is a shared responsibility for everyone attending.
"We all want to go home safe at the end of the night. Let's just take care of each other," Jackson said.
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