Movie poster edited for Project X Haren

A Dutch girl posted an invitation to her 16th birthday party on Facebook. She apparently forgot to set it to private--friends and family only.

Somehow her invitation went viral in a distastrous way. Thirty-thousand people showed up, rioted and shut down Haren, a small town over 100 miles from Amsterdam. CBS reports that authorities in Haren knew something was coming, and the city thought it was prepared:

The crowds were not entirely unexpected. After the Facebook invite went viral, "Project X Haren" website and spoof videos announced parties and after-parties. A giant banner was unfurled on the side of a building. Thirty thousand revelers signed up that they planned to attend. One company planned to offer live streaming of the event.

The city prepared by removing street signs, closing off streets and banning alcohol at the train station.

Project X was a comedy about a high school party that spirals out of control. It premiered in the U.S. in March, 2012. Film critics hated the movie, using words like "loathsome" to describe it, but it still netted just over $100 million at the box office.

Project X Haren, before the riots, spawned all the usual viral digital polyps and pustules, including a Twitter account and its own website.

The most recent tweet from the Twitter account is in Dutch:

RT als je bij Project X Haren bent en nog niet dronken genoeg bent

— Project X Haren (@Projectxharen) September 21, 2012

It translates to a pretty predictable sentiment: "RT if you're with Project X Haren and not yet drunk enough."

The unfortunate teen girl, who will probably never neglect her Facebook privacy settings again if she remains on the social networking site at all, didn't even get to participate in all the fun: CBS reported that she and her family spent her sweet 16 at a secret location.