Police issue tickets for alcohol, excessive noise before Panda Game kickoff

Several people appear to have been ticketed for open alcohol and excessive noise ahead of the kickoff of Saturday's Panda Game.

Ottawa police tweeted at noon Saturday that they had "assisted @OttawaParamedic and issued over 20 provincial offence notices for open alcohol."

Bylaw officers had also "issued a $1,000 ticket for excessive noise on Chapel Street," police said in the tweet.

Police later deleted the tweet, however. CBC has reached out to the force for an explanation.

The Ottawa Gee-Gees won this year's edition of the annual football game against the Carleton Ravens by a score of 37-7. 

After the Gee-Gees won last year's game, thousands of people descended upon the Sandy Hill neighbourhood near the University of Ottawa.

At one point last year, a vehicle was flipped and several people ended up facing a range of charges.

City officials have warned that if people don't behave this year, the 2022 game could be the last one.

The Ottawa Police Service had said they would ramp up their presence at the game, attempting to keep the festivities from turning into chaos. They said they would have "zero tolerance" for disruptive parties.

Meanwhile, the city's bylaw department has increased the fines for violating noise rules to $1,000.