On May 1, 1970, a protest of the Vietnam War was held on the campus of Kent State University. This protest led to reports of students lighting bonfires in the streets and throwing bottles at police cars. There were also reports of violence between police and students. This led to reinforcements being called for from neighboring towns and the Governor by the mayor of Kent, Leroy Satrum. This led to the Ohio National Guard being sent to Kent State on the night of May 2, 1970. These Guardsmen stationed themselves at the then burned down ROTC adjacent to the commons of the university. On May 4, 1970 a protest took place on the commons of the university. The National Guard and police asked the protesters to disperse and when they refused the Guardsmen, armed with M -1 military rifles, pushed the group towards a football practice field. The protesters then threw rocks at the Guardsmen, who following that retreated up to the top of a hill where they began to fire shots. Some Guardsmen fired in the air while others fired directly into the crowd of protesters, killing four of them. (For more information see Kent State Shootings)