Rain Puts Damper on Atlanta Festival

Rain chased the huge “Freaknik” spring street party indoors into a shopping and entertainment complex Saturday as police kept watch after a night of looting and two shootings.

Eleven people were arrested in the Friday night looting, which damaged 11 stores in the area, officials said. Two men were arrested in the shootings.

Freaknik was expected to draw more than 200,000 black college students and other youths to downtown Atlanta.

Afternoon thunderstorms forced the throngs into the Underground Atlanta complex, where police clashed with a gang of looters Friday night.

About a dozen stores remained closed Saturday because of the looting. Management closed the complex at 5 p.m. because of concerns for employees’ safety.