MONROE — From a public safety perspective, Cheese Days 2024 was largely uneventful. And, officials say, that is a good thing.

“It’s a very family type of event, more than anything else,” said Monroe Police Chief Fred Kelley.

All told, he said, there were less than a dozen arrests related to the bi-annual party on Monroe’s square downtown — about four operating while under the influence (OWI) charges and five other minor arrests for various, misdemeanor violations. 

Those numbers are not that far off what could be expected during a normal summer weekend, he added.

“There were two or three fights,” Kelley said. “Practically speaking, Cheese Days has proven to be just like a busy weekend for us.”

As for the Green County Sheriff’s Office, the day proved extremely busy, even though Sheriff Cody Kanable said they had extra staff on board for the entire event. From Thursday through Sunday, the county 911 center had over 400 calls for service, a number that surprised even veterans working at the center who had been through previous events. Of the 400 calls, Kanable said, about 125 were considered emergency calls and all were handled eventually.

“Those were some incredible numbers,” he said.

Still, Kelley said, if there was any culprit for negativity around the festival it had to have been the weather — first the high heat for most of Saturday, which created an influx of heat-related illnesses that were handled by local EMS crews and other responders; and the rain on Sunday, which for the first time anyone can remember (outside of COVID-19), led to the parade being canceled.

That was a decision made by Cheese Days officials and public safety personnel.

“With over 500 people participating or volunteering, in addition to the thousands that come to view, safety is our main concern,” event officials posted to their Facebook page. “We can’t predict what the weather will be like at parade time but with the chance of thunderstorms leading up to, we cannot take that risk…. this has been the toughest decision we’ve had to make.”

To keep the public safe, Kelley said he relied on help from not only the Green County Sheriff’s Office but a large contingent — about 15 deputies — from the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office, which usually lends a hand through a “mutual aid” type of arrangement with Monroe.

There were officers on foot and on bicycle, and even some providing overwatch of the packed square to protect against any type of threat to the public — be it a sniper-type shooter situation or someone driving into the crowd. Those macabre possibilities were forced to the forefront with recent mass-casualty events in recent years in Waukesha, and Highland Park, Ill.

Kanable said his department was able to use a pair of drones to keep tabs on the vast crowd and allow them to easily complete tasks like checking roof tops for trouble. The department has “four or five” deputies that are certified drone pilots, he said.