Berkeley to Celebrate National Night Out Tuesday

Berkeley residents will take to the streets Tuesday night as part of National Night Out — a campaign to promote awareness about drug and crime prevention, and encourage neighbors to work together for safer communities.

The Berkeley Police Department plans to block off streets in the evening for neighborhood block parties to commence. Police officers, firefighters, and city officials will be in attendance, sharing information about crime prevention and emergency preparedness. 

"National Night Out" (NNO) is an annual event, held on the first Tuesday of August. Last year's campaign involved 15,000 communities from all 50 states, U.S. territories, Canadian cities and military bases worldwide, according to the NNO website. More than 37 million people participated in National Night Out 2010.

"It's a fun event which has been very successful in promoting crime prevention activities, strengthening police-community relations, and supporting neighborhoods," the Berkeley Police Department stated in a press release. 

For more information about this national event, visit National Night Out— America's Night Out Against Crime.

Berkeley Patch will have more on this story Tuesday, when a neighborhood group shares their successes in building community and promoting crime prevention through the National Night Out campaign.