A Florida Halloween shooting led to the death of two individuals, as well as injured 18 people. The incident happened early in the morning of Sunday, Oct. 28.
Authorities claimed that the shooting incident happened because two groups had a brawl in a Tampa street while celebrating Halloween festivities.
Police responders said that they arrived at the scene around 3:00 a.m. on the 1600 block of Easth o7th Avenue in the Ybor City area.
Florida Halloween Shooting Kills 2, Injures 18
Lee Bercaw, the Tampa police chief, shared details about the latest shooting incident during a press conference in the Ybor City area.
Bercaw and other law enforcement officials said that the fight happened in an area with some clubs and bars. They added that large numbers of late-night partygoers were seen at the crime scene.
"It was a disturbance or a fight between two groups. And in this fight between two groups we had hundreds of innocent people involved that were in the way," said Bercaw via The Guardian.
However, they were not sure if people involved in the brawl were inside the bars and clubs in the area. Some people who were able to capture the incident shared videos online.
Based on their footage, many people were wearing Halloween costumes while drinking and talking on the street. After a few moments, gunshots were heard, leading to a stampede.
Many people decided to topple over metal tables and use them as covers against the shooters. After the shooting incident and stampede, police officers and other responders were seen treating injured people.
One Shooter Surrenders, Two Still At Large
The Tampa police chief said that one of the shooters already surrendered himself to the police. But, Bercaw and other officials believe that two shooters are still at large.
As of writing, police authorities are still investigating the incident to identify the main reason for the brawl between the two groups.
Since Halloween in the U.S. is just about to begin, there's a chance that more brawls and shooting incidents like this will happen.
This is why National Crime Preventions Council Executive Director Paul DelPonte provided some tips on how to stay safe during the Halloween season.
"There is strength in numbers and there is safety and security in numbers," said DelPonte via ABC 7.
Here are other tips he shared:
- Always go out with one or more individuals when going treat-or-treating or to parties.
- Avoid wearing dark costumes so that people can easily see you. Instead, try wearing reflective clothes.
- At night, be diligent when crossing intersections since some drivers may be drunk.
- Avoid going to parties with lots of people since brawls can happen.
