(Philadelphia) Two gunmen fired more than 65 shots on a busy street in Philadelphia, injuring six people, at least one of whom is in critical condition, police said on Friday.
The police had to intervene around 11:30 p.m. Thursday in the Germantown district. They found a 21-year-old woman with multiple injuries to her abdomen and chest. Several dozen shell casings were lying beside it. Officers transported her to hospital where she remained in critical condition.
Five men, aged 19 to 29, were shot and wounded. They were transported to hospitals in private vehicles. All should be okay, police said.
Police are reviewing video from surveillance cameras, Chief Inspector Scott Small said Thursday evening.
The injured woman may have been the one targeted by the attackers, says Small. However, the large area of the crime scene – where cartridges from at least two semi-automatic weapons damaged parked vehicles – does not allow quick confirmation.
“We found more than 65 cartridge cases. That’s a lot of shots. It is difficult to say who was the intended target and who was hit by stray bullets, ”said the policeman.
According to a city of Philadelphia website, more than 1,827 people were injured by gunshot wounds in 2021, an increase of more than 600 from before the pandemic.
Police data indicates 559 homicides for 2021, the worst year in this regard since the city began compiling this statistic in 1960.