Officials reported that a mass shooting at a block party in Baltimore early on Sunday left at least two people dead and numerous others injured.
Police on Sunday identified the two victims who died at the party in the Brooklyn Homes neighbourhood as Aaliyah Gonzales, 18, and Kylis Fagbemi, 20. According to the police, 28 additional people were hurt, three of them seriously. According to a statement released by Baltimore police on Sunday, the injured victims were mostly teens and ranged in age from 13 to 32.
“Our hearts and prayers are going out to the families, sending out to the families and friends of these victims, as well as the community in our entire city,” acting Police Commissioner Richard Worley said at an earlier news conference.
Around 12:30 a.m. Sunday, the police initially received calls reporting the gunshot. According to Debra Schindler, regional director of media and public relations for MedStar Health, 19 individuals were sent to the emergency room of MedStar Harbor Hospital, where they were all found to be “suffering from varying degrees of injury from gunshot wounds.”
“Multiple critically injured patients were evaluated and triaged simultaneously by clinical staff, while hospital security managed the throng of family members that gathered in and outside of the emergency department,” Schindler said in a statement.
By Sunday afternoon, all but nine patients had been treated and released from trauma clinics in Baltimore. Twelve patients were being treated in the trauma centre at the University of Maryland Medical Center, while four more were receiving care in the pediatric emergency room. According to a spokeswoman, seven patients were still receiving care at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center on Sunday afternoon.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said at a morning news conference: “This was a reckless, cowardly act that happened here.
“I want those who are responsible to hear me, hear me very clearly,” Scott continued. “We will not stop until we find you, and we will find you.”
Addressing the perpetrators directly, he said: “I hope, every single breath that you take, that you think about the lives that you took and you think about the lives that you impacted here tonight.”
