US: Two killed, 28 injured in mass shooting in Baltimore; half of injured were children

Two people were killed and 28 others were injured in a mass shooting at an outdoor neighbourhood block party in Baltimore early Sunday (July 2). According to a report by the news agency Reuters, the shooting occurred at about 12.35 amlocal time in a courtyard of grass and pavement between a pair of two-story rowhouse structures in South Baltimore's Brooklyn Homes community. Hundreds of people were attending the Brooklyn Day party at the time of the incident.

The police said that the victims were identified as an 18-year-old woman and a 20-year-old man. And as of Sunday afternoon, nine of the 28 injured remained hospitalised, a few of them in critical condition, the police added.

Speaking to reporters, Baltimore Police Department's (BPD) Acting Commissioner Richard Worley said that 14 among the total injured were below the age of 18, adding the police were still trying to confirm the victims' ages.

'It was chaos'

Terry Brown, a resident of the neighbourhood, told the Baltimore Sun that he was standing outside his residence when he heard gunfire, followed by a stampede of people fleeing in panic for cover. "It was chaos. Parents were running around looking for their children, hollering and screaming, and don't know if their child has a bullet in them," Brown added.

The police were searching for multiple suspects, and Richard Worley urged the community to come forward with any information or videos that might help investigators identify the perpetrators.

"We know for sure there are more than one. We don't know how many (suspects)," Worley further told reporters.

Baltimore mayor Brandon Scott, meanwhile, called the shooting a reckless, cowardly act," and vowed that those responsible would be brought to justice. "We will not stop until we find you, and we will find you," Scott said.

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