‘Hail of bullets’ mass shootout with pair lifeless and a number of other injured after 30 photographs fired
A man and a woman have died and another five injured in a mass shooting in Birmingham, US, as police officers and helicopters were scrambled after 30 shots were fired
Bernarnd Watts, 50, lost his life in the shooting(Image: Facebook)
A horrific mass shooting has left two dead and another five injured as police officers scrambled to find the suspects who fired 30 shots.
Cops flocked to Birmingham’s Sandusky neighbourhood in the US on Thursday night after receiving calls multiple people had been shot shortly after 8:30 p.m.
After arriving at the scene officers found seven adults who had suffered gunshot wounds. Two have since died while the others remain in hospital.
The deceased have been identified as Benard Duane Montez Watts, 50, and Diandra Young Johnson, 33, both from Birmingham. Police spokesperson Officer De’Rell Freeman confirmed at least 30 shots were fired during the incident.
Officers said some type of gathering was taking place when the violence erupted. Freeman said: “The preliminary investigation has revealed that some sort of gathering was going on at the location when gunfire erupted and wounded at least seven.
“I can’t say how many shooters there were, but I can tell you that there were a plethora of gunshots fired in this area.” He added: “A bunch of shell casings on the ground, and we just have a lot of digging to do to figure out what transpired in this case.”
Officers worked through the night to attempt to find those responsible. The Star 1 helicopter was dispatched assisting officers from the air during the search. Freeman added: “Right now detectives are working to figure out if there are any persons of interest in the area.”
On the chopper’s deployment he said: “We have the assistance of Star 1 up, the helicopter. They are circling around. They’ll probably be up all night until we get some kind of indication on who did this.”
Police have confirmed the area around the crime scene has remained closed while authorities gather evidence as ongoing investigations continue. Freeman added: “We are deeply saddened by the passing of one of those individuals. We won’t sleep until we find out who’s done this, who’s caused this tragedy in this community.”
It comes after a previous shooting in which an influencer’s boyfriend lost their life in a suspected drive-by in Londrina in southern Brazil on Sunday (31 May). The ambush has been connected to a feud with another influencer. Renata Cristina, who boasts nearly 50,000 Instagram followers, was standing outside her home with partner João Bosco Cabral when the incident occurred.
A white Amarok pickup truck was driving past the property when a gunman suddenly unleashed a volley of shots. João leapt in front of the influencer to shield her, reportedly receiving six bullets to his chest and abdomen.
The 22-year-old died at the scene. Renata sustained a gunshot wound to the clavicle and remains in hospital recovering.
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