At least one person was killed and several others were injured after gunmen, whom one witness described as all under the age of 21, opened fire at a barbecue in a park in Rochester, New York, on Sunday.
Rochester police said they responded to Maplewood Park about 6:20 p.m. to a large gathering with gunshots and found several people with gunshot wounds. The city is about 340 miles northwest of Manhattan.
A 20-year-old man was killed, another person, a woman, suffered life-threatening injuries and five people were hospitalized with minor injuries, Capt. Greg Bello said. The identity of the person who died has not been released.
“At this point we don’t know how many people were shooting,” Bello said. “We’re trying to gather as many witnesses as we can.”
A video taken by an attendee shows dozens of people enjoying the nice weather before numerous pops are heard, forcing everyone to duck for cover.
At one point a voice is heard repeatedly saying, “Keep the pressure on.”
The video begins by showing a large group of people enjoying the summer sunshine at a barbecue in the city of Rochester.
The scene quickly turns into panic as multiple bangs are heard, at one point a voice can be heard saying, “Keep the pressure on!”
In a Interview with WHEC, Rochester Police Chief David Smith said investigators are still trying to establish whether the gunmen were originally part of the group or were outsiders.
“Everyone was having a good time. There was no reason to be alarmed or think anything was going to happen. It was just a group of people having a picnic in the park,” Smith told the broadcaster.
No suspects were in custody, police said, but confirmed they were searching for several gunmen.
A woman who lives near the park told WHEC she thought the noises she heard were firecrackers until she saw people running away from the area.
“I thought it was firecrackers, but when I saw people running I knew it was gunshots. As I was walking toward the front of my house, there was a young girl running toward me, panting, asking me for help, help, help. So I picked up my trunk, gave her a bottle of water and sat her down,” said Carla Owens Martin.
Another neighbor described the scene as “pure terror.”
“Looking out the window, the whole park was full of people running for their lives. There were people hiding behind cars, jumping over the fence, crying. It was pure terror,” said one resident. Rochester first.
Another spoke of a scene that featured “kids with guns in their hands.”
Local police inspect the shooting site and a giant smoke can be seen
A neighbor told a member of the media that she thought she heard firecrackers until she saw people running for their lives.
Rochester is located about 350 miles northwest of New York City.
“We looked out our front window and there were two kids here on our porch with guns in their hands, and then we were like, ‘Now what?'” said resident Shelley Strong.
Rochester Mayor Malik Evans, a Democrat who visited the scene, said: “It’s a tragedy what happened today.”
“The most important clue we need is the one about the people who pulled out the guns and started shooting,” the mayor added.
“That’s what we need. I guarantee you, with so many people out here enjoying the summer weather this Sunday, someone here saw something. There are cameras everywhere. We just need a lead; nothing is too small.”
The Rochester Black Republican Club also published a statement about the shooting.
“Don’t blame race, gun control, gender, or Trump for this tragic mass shooting in Rochester, New York. It’s time to move past the usual scapegoats and address the real issues head on.”
“We need genuine solutions to the rise in crime in our city, not just more concessions to the Black community with claims that it’s all due to Jim Crow laws and Trump policies. Let’s have an honest conversation about the root causes and how we can effectively address them,” the statement reads in part.
Anyone with images or information is asked to call 311, 911, email MajorCrimes@cityofrochester.gov, call the Major Crimes Unit at 428-7157, CrimeStoppers at 423-9300.