Australia Day celebrations took an ugly turn in Perth when dozens of people were involved in a violent brawl that was caught on video.
A large group of revelers had gathered at Swan River to ‘raft on’ by anchoring their boats together when a fight broke out between a group of young men.
More than 20 boats were parked on a sandbar in Rocky Bay near Mosman Park to enjoy the warm temperatures on Friday when the fight broke out.
An Australia Day rafting trip on Washington’s Swan River turned violent. Image: 9 News
In images of the fight, a large group of men appear to be pushing and kicking each other. Image: 9 News
A video shared on social media shows a man being pushed into the water as partygoers scramble towards each other.
The shocking footage shows a large group of shirtless men kicking, punching, pushing and hitting each other during the violent fight.
Some participants even appear to stomp on others while submerged in the water.
The video has been viewed thousands of times on social media, but commentators appear to have taken the fight lightly.
Several social media users took the opportunity to ridicule the fighters, blaming alcohol and partying for the bad behavior.
“I can’t handle a few beers,” said one social media user.
“It’s not Australia Day without a bit of fuss,” said another.
“Where are the bull sharks when you need them,” a third user wrote.
Western Australia Police have been contacted for comment.
Wild teen fight in Sydney
It comes as a chaotic incident involving as many as 50 teenagers at Sydney’s Manly Wharf ended with multiple arrests on Australia Day.
A large group of teenagers, many dressed in bikinis, were involved in a heated argument on Friday afternoon.
The incident started around 4pm and footage showed police chasing the teens.
Pepper spray was reportedly deployed by officers as they tried to control the situation on one of Australia’s most iconic beaches.
The incident in Perth came after an incident in Sydney involving as many as 50 teenagers at Manly Wharf ended with multiple arrests
Nine reporter Madison Scott described it as an “intense, chaotic afternoon.”
“There was a lot of pushing and shoving between the authorities and some of those individuals in that group,” she said.
‘Two young teenagers were eventually arrested, one of whom was pinned to the concrete before being taken away by police.’
Ms Scott added that there had also been a number of arrests and police were on alert for more problems.
A video of the brawl was posted on the social media page @creaturesofManly with the caption ‘Ratbags take Manly’, sparking widespread reaction online.
One person wrote: ‘They should close Manly to anyone under 18 for (Australia Day), excluding babies/toddlers or children accompanied by their parents. This is disgusting, poor officers.”
The Manly incident started around 4pm, with footage showing police chasing the teenagers
Another argued that this was ‘reason to change the date’.
‘This s*** has been happening for years!’.
A third person compared it to the Cronulla riots, a major incident involving thousands of people in 2005.
The riots started as a dispute between a group of Middle Eastern youths and lifeguards at Cronulla beach, before spreading to Sydney’s south-west.
A NSW Police spokesperson said they attended the Manly Wharf forecourt following reports of a fight.
Police have arrested three male teenagers who were taken to Manly Police Station and are assisting with the investigation.