Baltimore shooting: two dead and dozens injured in US city

Two people have been killed and 28 wounded in a mass shooting in Baltimore, including three who are in critical condition, police have said.

The Baltimore Police Department acting commissioner, Richard Worley, confirmed there were a total of 30 victims during a press conference at the scene on Sunday. Police said they were still looking for the shooter.

The shooting took place shortly after 12.30am at a block party in the Brooklyn Homes area of South Baltimore in the 800 block of Gretna Avenue, Worley said.

A 20-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene, and an 18-year-old man died later in hospital.

Hundreds of people were gathered in the area for an event called “Brooklyn Day”, a witness told local television station Fox 45. That witness described hearing 20 to 30 shots fired.

All of the victims were adults. Nine victims were taken by ambulance and 20 victims walked into area hospitals with injuries from the shooting, Worley said.

Medstar Harbor Hospital’s emergency department treated 19 patients Sunday morning, all suffering varying degrees of injury from gunshot wounds, MedStar Health Baltimore told Reuters.

“Nine critically injured patients were stabilized and transferred to Baltimore trauma centers,” an email from the hospital said, adding that all but one patient had been released.

“I want those who are responsible to hear me, and hear me very clearly,” the Baltimore mayor, Brandon Scott, said at the scene. “We will not stop until we find you, and we will find you. Until then, I hope that every single breath you take, that you think about the lives that you took, think about the lives that you impacted here tonight.”

No arrests were made immediately after the shooting. Scott asked anyone with information to come forward to assist investigators locate the “cowards” responsible.

“Treat this as if it were your family,” Scott said. “How you would want people to treat it if you were mourning, if this was your neighbourhood, if this was an event in your community that this happened at. We want you to treat it that way because that’s how we have to treat each other as Baltimoreans.”

Seven people were wounded and two others needed hospital treatment for trampling in a separate overnight shooting at a nightclub in Kansas, authorities said.

Wichita police Lt Aaron Moses told reporters that gunfire erupted at the club on North Washington Street at about 1am, and some patrons were crushed in the rush to escape.

One of the victims was critically wounded, he said. One person was detained for questioning.

As of Sunday, there had been more than 335 mass shootings in the US so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more victims are wounded or killed.

That high number – more than one daily – has led for many in the US to call for meaningful gun control, though Congress has been unable to enact such measures.

Reuters and the Associated Press contributed reporting ]]>