The Fire Marshal's Office has been conducting fire code inspections all day on Thursday to prepare for the large crowds at local bars.

"I think it's a good thing that they're out there doing that so we don't have any problems," said Andre Johnson from Northeast El Paso.

Johnson is hitting the clubs early to avoid the New Year's Eve crowds.

"On New Year's, a lot of these night clubs are up to capacity and we want to make sure the public has a safe place to celebrate the new year," said Lt. Mario Hernandez from the El Paso Fire Marshal's Office.

Fire crews conducted safety inspections and looking for fire code violations, locked or blocked exits and overcrowding. They make recommendations and on Thursday night they'll return to the night club or bar to make sure the corrections are made.

"We're being proactive, we want to make sure these places are safe. By the time they come here to celebrate the new year these places will already be safe and people can celebrate safely," said Hernandez.

Some patrons said they're glad someone is looking out for the public safety.

"If we're having a good time in the he club we need people in the fire department to make sure they doing the safety issue so we can party a little bit harder," said Johnson.

The Fire Marshal's Office will issue citations if they see any violations, and those range from $500 to $2,000.