US: 2 killed, 28 injured after mass shooting at housing block

At least two people were killed and 28 wounded in a mass shooting early Sunday at a block party in Baltimore in the US, police said.Nine people were taken to area hospitals for treatment and three of the injured are in critical condition, the report said.

According to sources, hundreds of people had gathered in the area for an event called “Brooklyn Day”, adding that they had heard 20 to 30 gunshots.

Police received multiple calls about a shooting just after 12:30 am Sunday (04:30 GMT) at a street party in the city’s Brooklyn neighborhood in Maryland state, Acting Police Commissioner Rich Worley said during a press conference.

One 18-year-old woman was found dead at the scene, with a 20-year-old male victim also confirmed to have been killed, a police statement said.The wounded victims were being treated at area hospitals, he added, with three of them in critical condition.

No arrests were made immediately after the shooting. Worley said authorities were working to identify a suspect and determine a motive for the shooting.”This is an extensive crime scene, our detectives are going to be here quite a while,” he said.

“This is an absolute tragedy that did not have to happen,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said.

“It again highlights the impacts and the need to deal with the over-proliferation of illegal guns on our streets and the ability for those who should not have them to get their hands on them,” Scott said.

“We will not stop until we find those cowards who decided to just shoot dozens of people, causing two people to lose their lives,” he said.

Sunday’s mass shooting was at least the 337th to occur this year, according to the GVA, which defines a “mass shooting” as a gun-related incident in which four or more people are wounded or killed.