At least five people sustained injuries in a shooting Saturday night at a Los Angeles beach in San Pedro, according to the authorities. A gun buyback event was held earlier in the day by police and a city official a few kilometres from the beach.
According to Lt. Sharon Brady of the Harbor Community Police Station of the Los Angeles Police Department, police were called to a complaint of a shooting near Royal Palms Beach in the San Pedro neighbourhood at 5:44 p.m. Four victims of gunshot wounds were taken by emergency personnel to nearby hospitals. Brady said that authorities were informed at around 7 pm that a friend had transported a fifth victim to the hospital.
“We have some in critical condition, some stable and some serious,” Brady said. Suspects apparently fled the area in a car. No one had been arrested as of Saturday night.
Police said that they think two guys approached the gathering of people at the beach before an incident broke out. However, they fled the area. The LAPD said that bullets struck all five victims. According to authorities, one victim was in critical condition, while four of the wounded were in stable condition. All five are seeking medical attention in a nearby hospital.
Janice Hahn, Los Angeles County Supervisor organised the gun buyback event in Wilmington in coordination with the police.
In a Twitter post on Saturday, Hahn wrote, “Councilman Tim McOsker and I have been informed of a shooting at Royal Palms beach in San Pedro. We were told 4 people had been shot and the victims were being transported to the hospital. Their conditions are unclear. I am heading there now to assess the situation.”
Later, a joint statement was issued by Hahn and Hahn and Los Angeles City Councilman Tim McOsker.
As per the statement, Royal Palms Beach will remain closed tomorrow as the authorities work together to ensure safety in the area. Royal Palms Beach is in San Pedro which is located just west of Terminal Island and the Port of Long Beach. Expressing outrage over the shooting, the statement said that gun violence is wreaking havoc on the community.
Hahn said that at least 45 guns were exchanged for gift cards at the event. Gun violence in the United States results in tens of thousands of deaths and injuries every year.
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