MUNICH -- Heavy rain and stricter security did little to dampen the spirits of beer lovers at the start of this year's Oktoberfest, which opened Saturday in the Bavarian city of Munich.
Mayor Dieter Reiter tapped the first keg at noon with a respectable two strikes, to the approval of thousands of thirsty visitors gathered in one of 14 vast tents on Munich's Theresienwiese fairground.
Responding to a series of attacks in recent months, authorities decided to erect a metal fence, ban large bags, install more surveillance cameras and make visitors go through security checks to enter the festival grounds this year.
In the bloodiest attack, a German teenager fatally shot nine people at a Munich mall before killing himself. Two other attacks were carried out by asylum seekers and claimed by the Islamic State militant group; several people were wounded, but only the attackers were killed.
"Personally, nothing that has happened has changed my opinion about coming to the Oktoberfest," said Nico Baunbach, a 34-year-old exhibition manager from Munich who was dressed in traditional lederhosen, felt jacket, checkered shirt and Bavarian haferl shoes tied to the side.
"Terrorism is in fact reducing," Baunbach said. "We're only concerned now because it looks like it's arrived in Germany."
The attacks have fed a sense of unease in Germany about the arrival of more than a million migrants since the start of last year -- many of them refugees from war-torn countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. Security officials have acknowledged that while the vast majority of migrants are law-abiding and peaceful, a small minority may be coming to Germany with criminal intent.
Still, though authorities say there is a "high abstract danger" of an attack at the 17-day festival that is expected to draw 6 million visitors, police have stressed that there's no indication of any concrete threats.
Munich police plan to have about 600 officers on hand, about 100 more than last year, during peak times. Another 450 security guards will also check bags and keep an eye on the sometimes-inebriated visitors.
Despite the high attendance -- up to 600,000 visitors turn up on some days -- there have been few cases of violence at the festival, which was first held in 1810 to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to Theresa of Saxony.
The festivities were repeated annually in October, but later were shifted to start in September, when the temperatures in Bavaria are usually warmer.
In 1980, a far-right extremist set off a bomb that killed 12 people and himself, and wounded more than 200.
Last year, police said they responded to 2,017 reports, including fistfights and stolen wallets and purses. About 20 sexual crimes were reported, including one attempted rape.
Tim Harris, a Briton who works for a pharmaceuticals company in neighboring Switzerland, said he had no second thoughts about going to Oktoberfest.
"I come here every year to see my friends, and you can't let these things stop you doing what you like to do," the 36-year-old said. "That said, some people I work with were due to come, but because of the fence and the reported security issues they canceled."
Sebastian Schneider, 36, an online marketer from Munich, blamed the lower turnout partly on the weather. After weeks of fierce sunshine, the skies opened and temperatures dropped across Germany on Friday.
Information for this article was contributed by Frank Jordans of The Associated Press.
A Section on 09/18/2016