There's little cool about people gathering in the middle of intersections to light fires and chase around spinning cars, but those obnoxiously noisy and dangerous stunt driving / street racing / loud car dude meetups can look kind of dope from above.

That doesn't make them legal, of course, as the Durham Regional Police Service confirmed Friday when sharing helicopter footage of a "large vehicle gathering" featuring hundreds of participants.

"On Saturday, February 12, 2022, at approximately midnight, police received complaints from citizens and storeowners regarding a large vehicle gathering at the intersection of Clements Road and Squires Beach Road," wrote police when sharing the footage from their Air1 chopper.

"Our Air1 Unit spotted several hundred people and approximately 30 vehicles operating recklessly in the intersection. The vehicles blocked the entire intersection and vehicles took turns doing donuts in the middle of the intersection."

Consistent with what we've seen at similar events in recent years, police say that occupants of the vehicles were seen "hanging out the sunroof and windows recording the event" while others actually climbed up street light posts just to capture these stunts on camera.

Little did all of those chumps on the ground know that cops were filming them with an infrared camera from the sky, creating footage way cooler than anything someone else could have produced.

"There could be at least a hundred people here," says one officer at the top of the video as a car spins around an intersection, heat emanating from its wheel wells.

Dozens of people can be seen standing within the car's immediate vicinity as it does donuts, some actually chasing the vehicle to record it despite the risk of being hit. Many more stand even further around the perimeter, still coming dangerously close to harm as the car spins wildly around the area.

DRPS says that most participants fled the area "at high rates of speed" once officers arrived, including one white BMW that was spotted heading westbound at speeds upwards of 200 km/h on Highway 401.

Police are looking for any witnesses with potential dash-cam video of the dangerous drivers, who could face serious consequences if dinged under Ontario's new, stricter stunt driving laws.

"Durham Regional Police would like to remind the public of the increased penalties for the existing stunt driving legislation, which now includes the same enforcement capabilities on private property that it does on a roadway," said DRPS Sgt. Stacey Benson in a release on Friday.

"If you are charged with stunt driving, your licence will be immediately suspended for 30 days as well as your vehicle impounded for 14 days. If convicted, you will face a fine of between $2,000 - $10,000, possible jail time, six demerit points as well as a one-year licence suspension."