Residents of the small Dutch town of Geldermalsen took to the streets to protest against the proposal of building an asylum centre for migrants.

More than a thousand people began tearing down fences and shouting anti-immigrant slogans, according to The Guardian.

Images and videos of the incident show people throwing beer bottles, fireworks and debris at the local police. In retaliation, the police fired warning shots to keep the crowd at bay.

The incident turned the protest into a riot, but no injuries were reported.

The Guardian quoted the Twitter account of the Geldermalsen police as saying: "numerous arrests have been made so far, not clear yet how many. (sic)"

The town of Geldermalsen is home to 27,000 people, of whom 2,000 people took part in the event, according to Dutch national broadcaster NOS. In October, a bunch of hooligans had attacked a Syrian refugee.

The recent protest is the biggest anti-immigrant display ever in the Netherlands, the report stated.

A town council meeting to decide the course of action — building an asylum centre — had to be stopped. Policeman evacuated the building as rioters sought to force their entry into it, the Guardian report said.

On Wednesday, the local police said the crowd had not dispersed. They asked the protestors to leave the town centre and promised that the council meeting would not resume.

Klaas Dijkhoff, the deputy Justice Minister overseeing immigration and asylum policy, called the incident "un-Dutch", according to The Guardian report.

Reportedly, many European nations are struggling to cope up with the influx of refugees who are mostly fleeing the Syrian civil war. The refugees or migrants arrive from Turkey, Greece and Balkan routes, seeking asylum in the European countries.