NASSAU COUNTY, Long Island (WABC) — Former President Donald Trump addresses a packed room at the Nassau Coliseum on Wednesday night for a campaign rally.

The large demonstration comes just days after the second attempted assassination of the former president in Florida last weekend.

Ahead of the rally in Uniondale, Long Island, NewsCopter 7 showed large crowds gathering in the afternoon amid heavy security.

The parking lot was thoroughly checked overnight, with police throwing out several vendors and people trying to camp.

Police have removed social media posts that falsely reported that explosives had been found in a car near the planned rally on Wednesday morning.

According to Nassau County Police Chief Patrick Ryder, police questioned and arrested a person who “may have been training a bomb detection dog” near the scene of the rally and “falsely reported that explosives had been found.”

Lt. Scott Skrynecki, a spokesman for the area police department, said in follow-up messages that the person, whom police have not yet identified, was a civilian and not a member of a law enforcement agency.

He also said the person did not work at or have anything to do with the event, which was expected to draw thousands of Trump supporters to the arena that was once home to the NHL’s New York Islanders.

More than 60,000 tickets were requested for the rally. The facility has only 16,000 seats, with the rest watching on large screens outside, described as a tailgate-style experience.

People were lining up long before the parking lot’s opening time of 8am.

It is Trump’s first rally on Long Island, a suburban area east of New York City, since 2017.

Several protests were planned in a designated “Free Speech Zone” on the sidewalk along Hempstead Turnpike, just west of the main entrance.

Hempstead Turnpike remained open, but traffic was heavy.

Anyone who does not have work in the area was asked to stay away from Wednesday afternoon.

The following items were not allowed to be brought to the meeting:

Drones, aerosol cans, alcohol, devices, backpacks or rolling suitcases, no bags larger than 12 x 14 x 5 and they must be transparent, balloons, balls, poles, sticks, banners, signs, posters, chairs, coolers, e-cigarettes, firearms, glass, thermal containers, air horns, whistles and megaphones.

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