VIDEO: Atlanta Crowds Riot for Gov't Handouts

EAST POINT, Ga. (FOX 5 Atlanta) - Chaos unfolded outside an East Point shopping center on Wednesday morning as thousands of people gathered for their chance at receiving federal housing assistance. Video from the scene of the Tri-City Shopping Plaza showed a large group of people congregating in the parking lot despite extreme temperatures, and tempers were high.

People started lining up on Sunday in hopes of receiving an application giving them the chance to apply for Section 8 housing assistance. Those applications would put them on a waiting list for assistance.

On Wednesday morning, crowds gathered around police cars as officers and East Point Housing Authority workers handed out the application forms, which people were then to fill out and turn in. Aerials from above the parking lot showed people mobbing the officers in their vehicles as they tried to get their papers. Once the forms were handed out, the crowd quickly dispersed.