A tragic mass shooting occurred on Saturday night in Birmingham, Alabama, in the United States, leaving at least four people dead and dozens injured.
The violence erupted around 11 p.m. in the bustling Five Points South area, a popular entertainment district known for its vibrant nightlife, featuring restaurants, nightclubs, pubs, and live music venues near the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
According to Officer Truman Fitzgerald of the Birmingham Police Department, “multiple shooters fired multiple shots on a group of people,” resulting in a chaotic and deadly scene.
When officers arrived, they discovered two men and a woman unresponsive, all of whom had suffered fatal gunshot wounds. They were pronounced dead at the scene. A fourth victim succumbed to injuries at a local hospital.
As of early Sunday morning, no suspects had been apprehended.
The Birmingham Police Department is working diligently to identify those responsible for what has become one of the deadliest shootings in the area in recent memory.
“Rest assured, we are going to do everything we possibly can to make sure that we uncover, identify and hunt down who was ever responsible for preying on our people,” Fitzgerald emphasized, underscoring the gravity of the situation.
The tragic incident contributes to a grim statistic of at least 403 mass shootings across the United States this year alone, as recorded by the Gun Violence Archive.
The organization, alongside CNN, defines a mass shooting as an incident in which at least four people are shot, not including the perpetrator.
In addition to the four fatalities, several other individuals were injured, with some victims found on the sidewalk or in the streets of the popular district.
Police are investigating whether the attackers approached the victims on foot or drove by in a vehicle.
University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital, one of the area’s primary medical facilities, received 11 victims, including one who later died.
Hospital spokesperson Hannah Echols confirmed the news but did not disclose the conditions of the surviving victims.
“We have dozens of gunshot victims from this area,” Fitzgerald reported. “I’m told at least four of those gunshot victims are life-threatening, the others have various injuries.”
The police have yet to determine the exact number of shooters involved or the motive behind the violence.
The incident has prompted a significant law enforcement response, with multiple agencies collaborating in the investigation.
Police have urged local businesses to share any surveillance footage that may help in identifying the assailants and have appealed to the public for any information that could aid in solving the case.
Commenting on the rise in gun violence, Fitzgerald observed that such tragedies “have more to do with culture than they do criminality,” pointing to a troubling trend of conflicts being resolved through gunfire rather than dialogue.
This devastating event has once again highlighted the urgent need for community and governmental efforts to address the root causes of such violence.
