Hours after the famous parade, thousands turned out for the St. Patrick’s Festival on River Street.

This is NEWS 3’s Alaina Anderson’s fourth year as a live reporter along the parade route.

An estimated 500,000 people are lining the St. Patrick’s Day parade route in Dublin today.  But this year’s celebration is being dimmed by both economic
recession and rising violence.

A mid-week St. Patrick’s Day may not be as crowded as it could be, but no matter how big the crowd, Savannah-Chatham Metro Police are out in full force to make sure everyone stays safe.

Of course Saint Patrick’s Day is not just a time to party it’s also a time to remember.

Tybee Island also celebrated the wearing of the green. They had their Seventh Annual Irish Heritage Celebration Parade this afternoon.

With Saint Patrick’s Day only three days away preparations on River Street are underway for the big day.
Already many visitors have poured in to Savannah for the festivities.
News Three’s Alice Massimi went downtown today and found that for many businesses the party has already begun.

With all the partying going on it’s sometimes hard to remember the true meaning of Saint Patrick’s Day which is why the City of Savannah sponsors Tara Feis.

Proceeds from the hand stamp sales will benefit Goodwill Industries of the Coastal Empire, Inc. The upscale restrooms will be located in the parking lot across from Kevin Barry’s and Fiddlers.

Thinking about your safety and others this Saint Patrick’s weekend.  What you need to know before you take a sip of alcohol. 

Port Wentworth Police say they always see a sharp increase in drunk driving and other offenses over the St. Patrick’s Day weekend. With the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety conducting a safety campaign in nearby Bulloch County, some of those resources are in Port Wentworth to make sure revelers know there’s no excuse for driving drunk.

The countdown is on, less than four days until Saint Patrick’s Day. River Street is filling up and so are the hotels downtown. Some of the guests are coming from rather far away

St. Patrick’s Day festivities are quickly approaching and stress-free transportation to and from downtown with no parking worries are high on everyone’s list of priorities. Chatham Area Transit (CAT) offers many convenient options for people to get downtown to the parade activities and leave their vehicles at home.

Some good news out of Savannah City Council today; the Saint Patrick’s Day Committee was granted a permit for the one hundred eighty fifth annual parade.