A gunman fired into a crowd outside a Cincinnati bar early Sunday morning, leaving nine people wounded, police said.
The mass shooting occurred around 1:30 a.m. in Cincinnati, Ohio’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood — which is known for its popular nightlife — at the corner of Main Street and Woodward, theCincinnati Enquirerreported.
Police said they are searching for at least two suspects, according to the outlet.
Mayor Aftab Pureval called the incident “an absolute tragedy” during a press conference on Sunday.
The mayor added: “The gun violence we are seeing in our communities cannot and will not persist, and we will continue to work hard to prevent gun violence in the future. My heart goes out to the victims and their families and I thank God that there were no fatalities last night And that is because our police officers responded with heroic and immediate action. Thank you them one again for answering the call and saving lives.”
Most injuries to the victims were to the lower extremities and no known cases were critical, Cincinnati Police Assistant Chief Mike John toldWCPOon Sunday.
“We have one Cincinnati police officer that discharge one round, and we do not know if that officer struck the individual that he was firing the gun at,” John said during a news conference on Sunday morning, according to the outlet. “What I can tell you is the individual he was shooting at was actively firing a firearm at that time.”
The suspect fled, but more shots were fired afterwards, leading police to believe there was more than one shooter involved.
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The nine people wounded were treated and released from the University of Cincinnati Medical Center on Sunday. Their names have not been released, but officials said they range in age from 24 to 47, and eight are men and one is a woman, reported theCincinnati Enquirer.
Cincinnati Police told PEOPLE there is currently no further information available at this time.
source: people.com
