Multiple people were shot at a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial celebration in Miami, Florida.
The latest reports said eight people were shot after the King Day parade. NBC News reported that five of those shot were children or teenagers, and one person is in critical condition.
Eyewitnesses reported hearing multiple shots erupt. A Miami Herald reporter said on Twitter that three people were shot at the celebration at a local park, but that count increased.
NBC 6 reported that four people were taken to the hospital, although their conditions were not known.
Videos showed police assisting people from the scene.
The television station said the celebration of King’s life was being held at a Pan-African & Caribbean Family Festival on January 16.
The director of Miami-Dade Police Department called the mass shooting “shameful.”
It’s not yet clear what sparked the shooting or who fired. The shooting occurred in the Miami-Dade area of Florida.
News 7 reported that the shooting occurred at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park and that multiple people were shot. The television station added that early reports conflicted on the number of injuries, ranging from two people shot to five.
Two women may have been shot in the leg, and news reporters were at the scene when the gunfire broke out, reported News 7. Because the news media were present for the memorial, there were abundant videos of the aftermath.
Some videos showed law enforcement officers walking through the crowds of people with their guns drawn.
One video showed police carrying an injured woman at the memorial celebration.
January 16 is a national day of commemoration remembering the life and work of slain Civil Rights icon Martin Luther King Jr.
On social media, people lamented that someone would resort to violence on a day meant to celebrate the peaceful and hopeful activism of King. The motive and gunman are not yet known.
There were reports of a second unrelated shooting: