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Communities throughout the Hyattsville/Port Towns area will join others nationwide Tuesday in holding National Night Out events focused on community involvement in crime prevention.

The annual event is sponsored by the nonprofit National Association of Town Watch, which works to prevent drug abuse and crime.

Most of the events will include food, children's activities, information about law enforcement and public safety and representatives from local police and fire stations.

The City of Hyattsville will hold two National Night Out events. Before the official event kicks off in Magruder Park at 7 p.m., the Mall at Prince George's will hold activities, raffles and giveaways from noon to 6 p.m. inside the center court and in the parking lot, at 3500 East-West Highway.

Hyattsville's official event will have free food and a Cops-versus-Kids 3-on-3 basketball competition.

Last year, Bladensburg's event drew more than 300 people, deputy town administrator Tim McNamara said. This year, the event will feature raffles for items such as television sets, stereos and bicycles, as well as free food and games.

"It brings everybody a little closer," McNamara said.

Residents "get a chance to see the police in a different light, as opposed to being out here on patrol," he added. "They get to talk to [police officers] one-on-one… It makes [the officers] more human."

Colmar Manor's event will include a DJ, public safety displays and Prince George's County's park and planning department's skate mobile, which will block off a skating rink and provide free skate rentals to children.

North Brentwood, which doesn't have its own police department, will have county and U.S. Park Police on hand to meet residents and answer questions. And in Mount Rainier, the U.S. Army Drill Team will perform complex routines using bayonet-tipped 1903 rifles.

Last year was the first in 20 years that Riverdale Park held its National Night Out in the community rather than at the police department. Last year's turnout of between 1,000 and 5,000 people prompted town officials to hold separate events this year in each of the town's six wards.

Riverdale Park Police Chief Teresa Chambers called this year's event "a natural progression" in the department's efforts to involve residents in crime prevention.

A few neighborhood watch programs have been revived in the community and the police use CrimeReports.com, a Web site where residents can see reported crime incidents on an interactive map, she said.

"We've seen more communities get involved and taking responsibility for issues of crime and quality of life, so this is a perfect time to move National Night Out into the six wards," Chambers said.

E-mail Elahe Izadi at eizadi@gazette.net.

The following municipalities in the Hyattsville/Port Towns area will be holding National Night Out events Aug. 4.

-Bladensburg: 5:30 p.m., at the gazebo outside of town hall, 4229 Edmonston Road. Call 301-864-6080.

-Brentwood: 7 p.m. at Bartlett Park, 4300 39th Place. Call 301-927-3344.

-Colmar Manor: 6 p.m. at the intersection of 40th Place and Newark Road. Call 301-277-4920.

-Cottage City: 6 p.m. outside of the Cottage City Police Department, 3820 40th Ave. Call 301-927-9225.

-Edmonston: 6 p.m. at the Edmonston Recreation Center, 5100 Tanglewood Drive. Call 301-699-8806.

-Hyattsville: 7 p.m. at Magruder Park at the intersection of 40th Avenue and Hamilton Street. Call 301-985-5000.

-Mount Rainier: 6 p.m. at Thomas Stone Elementary School, 4500 34th St. Visit www.mountrainiermd.org.

-North Brentwood: 7 p.m. at the North Brentwood Community Center, 4012 Webster St. Call 301-864-0756.

-Riverdale Park: 7 p.m. at 4600 Tuckerman St.; 4700 Tuckerman St.; 4900 Madison St.; 5700 Silktree Drive; 5309 Riverdale Road; and 5400 Kenilworth Terrace. Call 301-864-8090.