Bigger Mardi Gras Crowd Prompts Potty Problem

Joe Briand recalled a less-than-fond Mardi Gras run-in with the law almost a decade ago, when hundreds of revelers were hopping a fence at a local school to use the playground as an impromptu bathroom.

With no restrooms to be found, Briand and two cohorts -- well into a long day of eating and drinking -- also made the trip to the al fresco latrine. However, a police officer confronted them.

The problem is one that thousands of revelers attending Mardi Gras in New Orleans have experienced over the years -- almost anything goes at Mardi Gras, but not everyone is able to go in a restroom.

The police officer "made us take off our shirts and clean it up and there was a river there from everyone using it all day," Briand said.

The second Mardi Gras since Hurricane Katrina is expected to attract a much larger crowd than last year's -- so the availability of toilets during the celebration has once again become an issue.

The problem is one of simple biology and geography. Take about 1 million people, turn them loose on the streets with plenty of beer and few bathrooms.