( CNN ) -- Police in London are lining up a huge police operation for the Notting Hill Carnival in the wake of the rioting and looting that hit the city earlier this month . More than a million people are expected to head to west London over the course of the colorful two-day event , which features music , parades , dancing and stalls serving up Caribbean favorites like jerk chicken and rice and peas . Some 5,500 officers will be on duty at the carnival on Sunday and 6,500 on Monday -- a public holiday in Britain -- with 4,000 additional officers deployed elsewhere across the city on top of usual police numbers , London 's Metropolitan Police , or Met , said . Commander Steve Rodhouse said creating a safe environment at the carnival is `` a top priority '' for the police force . Speaking to the press earlier this week , he said police had intelligence to suggest that some gangs intended to cause trouble at the event . `` I want to say to those who want to come to corrupt this magnificent event : You are not welcome , '' he said . `` Please do not come . The Met will do everything in its power to make it as hard as possible for you . '' Officers will carry out checks for weapons as people enter the area , he said in a prepared statement . Forty-three people have already been arrested as part of the Met 's annual Operation Razorback , which aims to deter suspected troublemakers from committing crime at the carnival . Organizers say the carnival will finish at 7 p.m. on Sunday and Monday -- an earlier time than usual -- in a bid to keep trouble from breaking out . The event started four decades ago as a local festival set up by the West Indian community of the Notting Hill area . Now , it involves a huge costumed parade , live bands , more than 40 static music stations and hundreds of food stands . There had been speculation the carnival , which its organizers say is Europe 's biggest street festival , might be canceled after the disorder that hit the capital 's streets three weeks ago . Tens of millions of dollars of damage was caused to shops and business in the violent disorder , with the west London borough of Ealing , north London 's Tottenham area and Croydon to the south of the city among the worst affected . As of Thursday , there had been 2,006 arrests for a variety of offenses connected with the unrest , with 1,135 people charged so far , the Metropolitan Police said . Some 950 people have already appeared in court and 42 have been jailed . Officers investigating the unrest have about 20,000 hours of security camera footage to watch and are working on more than 1,200 crime scenes , the police said .
Thousands of extra police officers will be deployed in west London and elsewhere . More than a million people are expected to attend the two-day Notting Hill Carnival . The Metropolitan Police said it was "reviewing its policing strategy" after the riots which left more than 100 injured on Saturday night. Three weeks ago , London was hit by outbreaks of rioting and looting .