Fourteen people were shot, and three were killed when several men opened fire into a crowd in the South Street section of Philadelphia Saturday night.
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The shooting took place on South Street between 2nd and 3rd street minutes before midnight as hundreds of people were on the strip. Moments later, the crowd heard gunshots and saw the gunmen firing into the crowd. NBC Philadelphia reported that one of the officers fired his gun at one of the shooters but it was unclear if the gunman was struck. Inspector D.F. Pace said the suspect dropped their weapon and fled from the scene. Officers also said they found two guns at the scene, one of them had an armed extended machine.
“There were hundreds of individuals just enjoying South Street, as they do every weekend, when this shooting broke out,”
Mayor Jim Kenney released a statement on Sunday in regards to the shooting and called it a “despicable act of gun violence.”
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“Once again, we see lives senselessly lost and those injured in yet another horrendous, brazen, and despicable act of gun violence. My heart is with the family, friends, and loved ones of those lost or injured, and with everyone impacted by this terrible tragedy.”
The South Street area is very popular among local residents and tourists as it is lined with restaurants, bars, and shops.
Pace also said during a press conference that the popular spot is always patrolled by police and investigators are hoping that businesses have surveillance footage that captured the shooting.
“I want to emphasize that South Street is manned by numerous police officers. This is standard deployment for Friday and Saturday night – weekends – and especially during the summer months.”
Local residents expressed their thoughts about the shooting as a similar shooting happened earlier this week in a separate neighborhood.
The other shooting took place last Tuesday when a woman and two other gunmen opened fire less than two blocks from Saturday’s shooting.
“Furious. I am furious, not just for my neighborhood, for the whole country. If I hear one more time ‘thoughts and prayers’ – bull—. We cannot disagree about this. We have to do something. I don’t care what your political leanings are. We can’t continue to let people kill people,” Maureen Long said to the outlet.