The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Shooting kill 6 in Philadelphia, Chattanooga
Several shot, some hit by cars in events with multiple shooters.
Shootings overnight left six people dead in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Philadelphia, continuing a spate of deadly gun attacks as Congress prepares to take up gun-control legislation.
Shortly before midnight Saturday, police officers on patrol in a popular nightlife area in Philadelphia heard gunfire and saw “several active shooters” firing into a crowd, Inspector D.F. Pace of the Philadelphia Police Department said at a news conference early Sunday.
Three fatalities have been confirmed, two related to gunshot wounds and one related to injuries suffered after being struck by a vehi- cle. Several victims remain in critical condition.
An officer fired at one of the gunmen as he was shooting, but it was unclear whether the man was hit, Pace said. The man dropped his weapon and fled when he was fired upon, the inspec- tor added.
About three hours later, at 2:42 a.m., police in Chattanooga responded to reports of shots fired near a nightclub. They found 14 gunshot victims and three people who had been hit by vehi- cles that “were attempting to flee the scene,” Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy said in a briefing Sunday.
Murphy said three people were killed, two by gunshots a nd one after being struck by a vehicle. She s aid the investigation was ongoing. “Multiple shooters” were involved, she said, but police did not have anyone in custody.
In Philadelphia, police were on the hunt for the shooters, Pace said.
Of the 14 people who were injured and brought to hospitals, three — two men and a woman — were pronounced dead on arrival, Pace told reporters.
Officials at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital told The Washington Post that it received 10 patients. Three died, six were in a “stable condition” and one had been discharged as of Sunday morning.
Police will look at video surveillance footage in the bustling area, Pace said.
“There were hundreds of individuals just enjoying South Street as they do every single weekend when this shooting broke out,” he added. “This investigation is fluid.”
Two weapons, both semiautomatic handguns, were recovered, Pace said. One of them had an extended magazine. “Multiple casings” of ammunition were strewn about the South Street area, he added.
The local ABC news outlet showed video of glass debris on the street and police tape cordoning off a busy shopping area.