DPS: Hospitals reporting security concerns during riots, will receive extra help Saturday

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Department of Public Safety says hospitals in the Twin Cities metro will receive extra help from state and local law enforcement Saturday night as the area faces another night of riots over the Memorial Day death of George Floyd. 

Hospitals have been reporting security concerns during recent rioting in Minneapolis and St. Paul, according to DPS. The Multi-Agency Command Center is coordinating to ensure medical facilities, resources and their patients remain safe. 

A curfew will go into effect at 8 p.m. for Minneapolis, St. Paul and surrounding cities. Authorities have vowed to begin enforcing the curfew much earlier than they did on Friday. 

Gov. Tim Walz has mobilized the full force of the Minnesota National Guard for the first time in the state’s history. Public Safety Commissioner said he expected to have 2,500 soldiers and airmen out in force Saturday. 

Protests have been taking place across the Twin Cities since Tuesday, at times devolving into rioting and looting. Large swaths of Minneapolis and St. Paul have been affected. Rioters set fire to the Minneapolis Police Department’s Third Precinct on Thursday and attempted to gain access to the Fifth Precinct on Friday, but authorities held it.