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Police: about 50,000 people flock to downtown Buffalo for annual St. Patrick's Day parade

Posted at 6:40 AM, Mar 19, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-19 06:40:09-04

The St. Patrick's Day festivities may now be over, but Buffalo was home to all things Irish for the weekend.

Buffalo Police tell 7 Eyewitness News some 50,000 people lined Delaware Avenue between Niagara Square and North Street for the 78th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade Sunday afternoon. Fortunately, attendees were pretty well-behaved as well. Police say they only made six arrests for disorderly conduct after the parade was over.

The celebration was also host to a few local celebrities. Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul made an appearance, telling 7 Eyewitness News, "I love coming here, and I love seeing all the children because it says to me they're going to be carrying on traditions long after we're gone. So this is great."

But Sunday was special for more than just St. Patrick's Day. Mayor Byron Brown declared March 18 "Emily Pfalzer Day," in honor of Olympic gold medalist and Buffalo native Emily Pfalzer. She played defense on Team USA's Women's Hockey team that beat team Canada to take home the gold medal for the first time in 20 years.

"It's been amazing, I'm so happy, this is my last stop, and I'm so happy to be home," Pfalzer said. "It's been amazing in Buffalo and I wouldn't expect anything else from the City of Buffalo." 

Pfalzer also dropped the puck at Saturday's Sabers win over the Chicago Blackhawks at the Keybank Center, and made an appearance at Harbor Center for the Beauts playoff game against Boston.