ROCHESTER, N.Y. — We’re a day away from the Tops St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Rochester, and the warmer weather is expected to bring out many more people than usual. Thousands are expected to swarm East Avenue and downtown to view the 3,000 marchers in this year’s parade. 

The Rochester Police Department spoke to News10NBC about what goes into keeping the crowd of revelers safe.

Captain Greg Bello says the RPD will have officers out in full force directing traffic and closely monitoring behavior. This is considered the largest single-day event in Rochester, and it’s known to be one of the biggest drinking days of the year.

Bello says while officers will be highly visible to the public in the case of an emergency, there will be a lot going on behind the scenes.

“We have some covert things in place as well that helps us keep these events safe. That can be as simple as, we have blue light cameras around the city, that we monitor a different area, so even if you don’t see a police officer there, a uniformed officer there, our cameras are out there. We do have other covert assets that we use in place as well to make sure all these events go off in a safe way,” explains Bello.

Bello wants to remind you to drink responsibly and to avoid getting behind the wheel if you’ve enjoyed a few pints.