Fourth of July Celebrations Turn Deadly in Philadelphia: 'Very Alarming'
One person was killed, and eight other people were wounded during an Independence Day drive-by shooting in Philadelphia on Thursday.
Police said that the shooting occurred as they were actively making attempts to prevent violence and that gunshot victims showed up at area hospitals throughout Thursday evening, according to CBS News.
Some of those who were struck by gunfire were minors.
The Philadelphia Police Department said a group of people were standing at an intersection on Thursday evening on the city’s southwest side when a dark SUV approached them.
The vehicle was occupied by at least two people, and one of them opened fire at around 11:30 p.m.
A 19-year-old man was shot in the face and was pronounced dead at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center a short time later.
Police have not released the man’s identity.
When officers arrived at the scene, they said they found additional victims.
At a news conference, Philadelphia Police Inspector Kpana Massaquoi said, “Our officers were in the area doing a routine patrol and observed someone laying on the ground.”
Massaquoi added, “It is very alarming, and especially when we have officers in the area to try to prevent anything like this from happening, and it still happened.”
The 19-year-old was joined at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center by three adults and one minor.
The victims included a 23-year-old man who was shot in the leg, a 21-year-old man who was shot in the shoulder, an 18-year-old man who was shot in the leg, and a 17-year-old boy who had been grazed in the head by a bullet.
A 16-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl were also shot and transported to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia with gunshot wounds to the thigh and foot, respectively.
Meanwhile, a 14-year-old boy and a 24-year-old man both showed up at different hospitals overnight with gunshot wounds.
Police have not yet released any detailed suspect information regarding the shooter or shooters.
It is not clear if the victims knew their attackers.
Police said that they had spent much of Thursday night attempting to break up large crowds of people.
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