PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Hours after Portland police wound down a mission designed to intercept street racers, a much larger contingent gathered in a different part of the city and created traffic havoc in the early hours of Sunday.

Portland police knew the racers were going to be out and about.

“We were seeing social media posts that were telling people to come out and, you know, pretty much take over the streets again,” PPB Capt. Chris Burley told KOIN 6 News. “We even saw posts of folks telling folks be ready to go to jail, it’s alright because the air conditioning is up and running in the jail.”

Around 1 a.m., PPB said in a release, about 100 cars arrived in a well-populated neighborhood near 6800 North Fessenden. Those street racers stayed there until shortly before 2 a.m., when they moved over to the Lloyd District.

“Some were doing donuts, speeding, running red lights, and zig-zagging through lanes of traffic,” authorities said. Only one police sergeant was able to respond, as officials said other officers were “tied up on a tactical incident” with a man firing a gun.

“Unfortunately, at that time, there were no officers available in the city,” Burley said.

Northeast Portland residents near Lombard Street, MLK Boulevard and Columbia Boulevard kept calling police about the street racers. Police said “North Precinct officers were busy with emergency calls” and by the time enough police responded, “most of the street racers had sped away.”

One lone driver was spotted at 4:17 a.m. doing donuts in the intersection at NE Killingsworth and 47th, officials said. That driver was stopped and his car was towed. A stolen gun was also seized and the driver was cited for speed racing, driving with a suspended license and driving without insurance.

All of this happened after PPB wrapped up a 10-hour mission around midnight.

Street racers were spotted around 5 p.m. near SE Belmont and 3rd, police said, but they drove off before any racing happened. Over the next few hours, police said they made 29 traffic stops, towed six cars, arrested two people and issued four citations.

“Nothing of what we say today is going to solve, resolve the fear, frustration that people called 911 last night and were expecting a response from the police,” Burley said. “But moreso we wanted to be transparent.”

Over the last few years, Portland police have utilized more stringent penalties during street racing enforcement. Despite the increased penalties and more active enforcement, street racing takeovers remain an issue in the city.

“I keep on using this phrase, but it’s the cat-and-mouse game,” PPB Capt. Chris Burley told KOIN 6 News. “The mouse is constantly changing what they’re doing. And the cat — the police — we need to be changing, modifying what we’re doing for the enforcement piece to ensure that the roads and the users of the roadways in Portland are safe.”