Zombie walk draws about 6,500

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PHOENIX, Dec. 14 (UPI) -- Organizers of the Zombie Walk in downtown Phoenix said they broke the local record with about 6,500 participants but fell short of a world record.

Downtown Phoenix Partnership, which organized the gathering of residents in tattered clothing and undead-style makeup, revealed numbers this week showing about 6,500 people participated in the Oct. 27 event.

That marked a record for the 4-year-old Zombie Walk but fell short of the Guinness World Record for a zombie gathering, which was set by 8,027 "zombies" this year in Minneapolis, The Arizona Republic reported Friday.

"For this year's walk we were gunning for 10,000 walkers but didn't quite make it," said R.J. Price, the partnership's senior director of marketing and communications. "We did draw nearly 10,000 to the festival, however, as people flocked to see the bands (there were five), get their faces painted, eat food-cart grub and drink Four Peaks beer."

Organizers said they hope to break the Guinness World Record with next year's event.