I ATTENDED riots and this was not a riot,” Salt Lake City Police Chief Rick Dinse said at a midmorning press conference on Sunday. “… I think it was the right amount of force at the right time.” Dinse said windows of several buildings and at least one vehicle were damaged during the clash, which began when thousands of individuals in a rowdy crowd became unruly after the Bud World beer garden attraction was closed after reaching the maximum capacity. Damage was estimated to reach "a few thousand," but both he and Mayor Rocky Anderson objected to initial reports characterizing the incident as a riot. 2002 Winter Games Complete coverage of Salt Lake • Gold medals snatched from two skiers • Police, crowd clash in SLC; arrests made • Celizic: There should be a gold medal for those who complain • Sorry Ohno, but these are the No Games • NBCOlympics.com: Torsional Injury Library • Ask the Olympic Expert • NBCOlympics.com • Official Salt Site Lake • Local Games Coverage • More on the Olympics “We want to point out that this was a relatively minor disturbance,” Anderson said. “…Frankly, I expected a lot worse than this and a lot sooner (at the Games).” Dinse said between 180 and 200 officers in helmets and riot gear responded to the area near Main and 200 South Street after receiving reports that the crowd was getting out of hand. The gathering was declared an “unlawful gathering” around midnight and officers began slowly pushing the crowd, many of whom were chanting “USA, USA!,” down Main Street south, Dinse said. Rob Garcia, 18, of Salt Lake City told The Associated Press that the crowd was yelling at police and officers were pushing people into cars. “The police were pushing people,” he said. “The policemen jumped to the other side and set up a barricade.” Two revelers argue in the street during a riot. Several shop windows were broken, but no injuries were reported. While many in the crowd obeyed orders to pay, some began hurling glass beer bottles at the officers, who responded by firing about 40 rounds from "impact devices" at the lower ends of the shops. members of the crowd, he said. The action quickly dispersed the crowd. Eighteen adults and two juveniles were arrested during the confrontation, and most were charged with public intoxication and failure to pay, Dinse said. Most of those arrested were locals, but at least one was a Canadian citizen, he said.