As video images of several police officers beating a University of Western Ontario student continued to spread online, school officials moved to defend the actions of the officers on Thursday.

The video shows campus and city police officers kneeing, punching and beating the student with batons while asking him to stop resisting arrest.

"Stop resisting, you're under arrest," one officer yelled over and over again.

A video of Wednesday's incident -- which occurred on school property -- was posted on YouTube and had generated more than 34,000 hits by Thursday evening.

A crowd of students are seen in the video standing by and watching the arrest unfold, some taking pictures with their cell phones.

Elgin Austen, the head of campus police, said Thursday that he didn't see "anything out of order" with the level of force the guards were using on the suspect when he arrived at the scene.

"It was being conducted consistent with the Ontario Police College and the training that officers have there," he said at a news conference.

He said it took several personnel to apprehend the suspect, who he described as a "strong individual." He said the man "was creating safety concerns" and the guards had a responsibility to maintain a safe environment.

He said people who view the video without context "may not understand what the officers were actually doing."

However, one witness to the arrest, who declined to be named, told CTV News that the student had not been violent prior to the arrest.

"He didn't say much. He didn't try to hit anyone. He just seemed disoriented."

Student council spokeswoman Carolyn Hawthorn told The Canadian Press that the incident has some students worrying about the conduct seen in the video.

"Students are reacting to what they've seen on the video and most are reacting with concern," Hawthorn. "We're encouraging students to review all the facts and to seek out the full information."

The incident began in the upper levels of the social sciences building. A suspect barricaded himself inside a room and appeared to be "disoriented," Austen said.

"Eventually everything came down to the main floor," he said.

Campus officials describe the student in question as being 6-foot-2 and weighing more than 200 pounds. He was taken to hospital for observation but then released into police custody.

A spokesperson for the university agreed with Austen that the situation had to be taken into context and reiterated that campus security was trying to keep students and faculty safe.

"The view of the video itself is somewhat disturbing without knowing the context of the full situation," said Gitta Kulczycki. "In terms of what were the officers trying to do -- let's recognize what was occurring."

However, she said whenever there is a situation of this nature, there is an automatic review of the incident.

"We will certainly cooperate fully with London police as that occurs," she said.

Irnes Zeljkovic, a London-area resident, has been charged with mischief under $5,000, assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest and escaping lawful custody.