At last minute, spooked officials call off Keansburg St. Patrick’s parade, and worry about Memorial Day

🍀'Suspicious device' found near St. Patrick's Day parade route in Keansburg

🍀 Businesses and crowds still salvaged festivities afterward

🍀 Mayor warns incident could impact future events, including Memorial Day parade

KEANSBURG — The last-minute cancellation of one of the last St. Patrick's Day parades of the season could impact the status of the township's Memorial Day parade.

The annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Keansburg was canceled Saturday afternoon because of a “suspicious device” found near the parade route, according to Keansburg police Chief Sandra Burton. Keansburg Mayor George Hoff said the decision was made less than 30 minutes before the parade was scheduled to step off.

"We were gonna start assembling the groups and order that they were supposed to be and we had to make that decision," Hoff told New Jersey 101.5, adding that he and Burton reached the decision together.

Officials did not say what the device turned out to be.

Hoff said that the reaction has overall been positive and supportive of the decision to prioritize safety over a parade. Once the area was deemed safe, St. Patrick's Day festivities resumed.

"People were able to let their hair down and still enjoy the day, which was good not only the businesses that had prepared for the parade and the after parades, but for the people to be able to just loosen up and know that they weren't in any more danger," Hoff said.

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Memorial Day parade concerns after Keansburg scare

Hoff and the parade committee are meeting on Tuesday to discuss the status of the parade. The longtime Republican mayor is not optimistic that it will be rescheduled for this year and is concerned about the annual Memorial Day parade.

"That's a game-changer in what happened. And now moving forward, we're gonna have to make sure that more security measures are put into place and stuff like that because I never want to be in that situation again," Hoff said.

The mayor was grateful for the quick response of the Middletown Police Department K-9 canine unit, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, State Police bomb unit, the FBI and ATF.

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