It was just police waiting for St. Patrick's Day revellers to show up on Ezra Avenue in Waterloo on Tuesday morning.

By early afternoon, the scene was no different. Music could be heard coming from inside some student houses, but the street remained largely empty aside from police and security.

Here's what Ezra Avenue looked like around 2:00 p.m.:

Each year, young people gather on Ezra Avenue in Waterloo to mark St. Patrick's Day with an unsanctioned street gathering. This year, just police walked up and down the streets as students appeared to heed warnings to stay home in light of COVID-19. This was the scene in the early afternoon on Tuesday. (Paula Duhatchek/CBC)

It was a sharp contrast from last year, when more than 33,000 people gathered on the street and adjacent streets to drink and party.

In comparison, here's what the street gathering looked like in 2019:

Ezra Avenue was filled with party-goers on March 17, 2019 for St. Patrick's Day. (Joe Pavia/CBC)

In an evening address, police Chief Bryan Larkin said the day went "amazingly well."

"Thank you for rising to the occasion. Thank you for putting the health of our community, the care of our citizens as our top priority and your top priority," he said.

"We've been working very hard over the last number of days, and weeks and in fact months to ensure a safe festivities. But in the last 7 days much has changed. We're in uncharted territory, unprecedented times and what we saw today was an unprecedented community response."

State of emergency declared

The province declared a state of emergency, students were told to move out of university residences and community leaders urged students not to attend the party to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Shoutout to Laurier for taking this pandemic seriously 🥰🎉 <a href="https://t.co/0USlFfCSB9">pic.twitter.com/0USlFfCSB9</a> —@SpottedLaurier

Much of the street was blocked off with fencing and electronic signs reminding people it wasn't worth it to party and that a state of emergency had been declared.

Larkin and acting medical officer of health Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang held a press conference Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. that was live-streamed online.

Larkin said officers were prepared to clear out anyone who came to the unsanctioned street gathering.

He said residents could be assured officers "are working to ensure the safety of all."

As of 10 a.m., there had been no issues on the street, he said.

I saw <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ezrastreet?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ezrastreet</a> (which should be <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ezraave?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ezraave</a>, may I add 🧐) trending & was ready to be furious, but instead I'm so proud of the students for staying home & thankful to <a href="https://twitter.com/citywaterloo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@citywaterloo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/WRPSToday?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@wrpstoday</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Waterloo_Fire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@waterloo_fire</a> & <a href="https://twitter.com/ROWParamedics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@rowparamedics</a> for everything continue to do 💚 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/kwawesome?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#kwawesome</a> —@midoriepm

Wang also reiterated the importance of not attending the gathering on Ezra.

"It is a real danger not only for their own health but for the health of our most vulnerable," she said.

She also thanked the young people "who are smart and responsible and who are playing their part in helping out [the] community to stay safe."

She said she felt confident in the work being done by police, first responders and the city on Tuesday.

"Now it's up to our citizens, it's up to all of us, to make sure that we continue to protect our community," she said.

A handful of students left their houses Tuesday, but Ezra Avenue was largely empty. (Paula Duhatschek/CBC)

Ezra Avenue was shut down Tuesday in anticipation of a large gathering. (Paula Duhatschek/CBC)

An abandoned beer pong table is pictured outside a house on Ezra Avenue. (Paula Duhatschek/CBC)

Signs set up on Ezra Avenue warn any groups gathering on the street are taking part in an unsanctioned event and pose a safety risk. (Paula Duhatschek/CBC)