Tampa officials condemn Super Bowl parties over the weekend

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(CNN) -

This weekend's Super Bowl brought hype and celebrities to Tampa, Florida, something that upset city officials.

Rapper 50 Cent and DJ Steve Aoki hosted their own parties, attracting many maskless attendees indoors.

Aoki's party was held at Tampa's WTR Bar & Grill at the Godfrey Hotel, while 50 Cent's was held inside a private hangar at Albert Whitted Airport.

There was also an event on Saturday night at the WTR Bar & Grill, featuring Diplo and 50 Cent, and while the same security measures were listed on the event site, the images were similar to Friday's party.

The WTR Bar & Grill did not respond to CNN's request for comment on Sunday.

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Rapper 50 Cent attends Big Game Weekend at Avalon Event Center on February 6, 2021 in Tampa, Florida.

This is not how we should celebrate the Super Bowl.

It is not safe or smart.

It's stupid, ”St. Petersburg, Florida Mayor Rick Kriseman tweeted on Saturday.

"We're going to take a closer look at this and it could end up costing someone a lot more than 50 cents," he said, making a pun on the rapper's name (50 Cent).

The holidays happen when Florida, along with California, is seeing an increase in cases of the new variant of covid-19, B.1,1.7, which was first identified in the UK.

Nearly 700 cases of this most contagious variant have been found in 33 states, according to the CDC.

Most are in Florida and California.

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The online flyer for Friday's party with DJ Steve Aoki boasted daily cleaning and disinfection "with electrostatic sprays," saying masks were a must for attendees and staff, and that there would be temperature controls, distancing protocols physical and disinfection stations.

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The event also caught the attention of the Tampa Police Department, which spoke out against the party in a statement to CNN.

"The scenes from WTR last night and some other clubs were incredibly disappointing," TPD spokesman Eddy Durkin told CNN.

For nearly a year, Durkin said the city educated residents about pandemic precautions and "recently imposed a mandatory mandate to wear face masks for entertainment and event areas to ensure the safety of our residents and visitors." .

"When the governor lifted the capacity restrictions and opened the bars, we turned to the united hotel community to reopen safely, but there is a level of personal responsibility that must be followed or risk closing," Durkin said in a statement.

50 Cent's Instagram posts featured an ad for a Super Bowl watching party elsewhere in Tampa on Sunday, and an event advertised as "50 Cent's Official Branson Stripper Bowl."

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