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Two people died in firing during a food festival in Seattle, USA on Sunday evening. 5 people including a child have been injured. The incident occurred in the final hours of the ‘Bite of Seattle’ festival held near Seattle’s Space Needle. Seattle Fire Department spokesperson Grace Nunez gave this information.
The firing happened around 6 pm. Police began investigating the area and appealed to people not to go near the incident site in the north-western part of the city. It is not yet clear whether anyone has been detained in this case or not.
Forces deployed at the scene after firing during the ‘Bite of Seattle’ food festival in Seattle on Sunday.
5 injured were taken to hospital
According to Seattle Fire Department spokeswoman Grace Nunez, both people killed in the shooting died at the scene. Five injured people were taken to Harborview Medical Center.
Among the injured, the condition of a 56 year old woman is critical. The condition of a 2-year-old child, a 23-year-old youth and a 39-year-old woman is said to be stable. A 40 year old woman has suffered minor injuries.
Seattle Police arrived at the scene of the shooting during the ‘Bite of Seattle’ food festival at Seattle Center on Sunday.
After the firing, a large number of police and emergency teams reached the spot. They began evacuating the area around the Seattle Center Events campus. Authorities have not yet said in which part of the festival the firing took place. The event included both open and indoor arenas.
Governor said- State Patrol SWAT team deployed to help
Washington Governor Bob Ferguson said that he is being continuously informed about the incident. State Patrol SWAT officers have also been deployed to assist local police.
“My thoughts are with the families of the victims and all those working to keep people safe,” Ferguson said in a statement.
People had returned with food items, then bullets were fired.
Festival attendee Faith Adia Hunter said she and her friends had just returned from getting food from a stall selling crepes when the shooting started. They realized that the shooter was close to them.
“We were right by it when it started. So we ran and went into the building with the crowd,” Hunter said. He said he and some others hid in the nearby Seattle Children’s Museum.
In the chaos that followed the firing, many food vendors left their stalls and ran outside. Hours later, some vendors still stood outside the police cordon, waiting to be allowed to return to collect their tents, food and cooking equipment.
The vendor said- first a sound like firecrackers was heard.
Roberto Ramirez, a vendor at the festival, said that he first heard a sound like firecrackers. After this people started shouting that the shooter was present and people started running away in panic.
“Suddenly everything went blank. People were very scared,” Ramirez said.
He told that even after the initial chaos, some new people kept arriving at the festival. He was not aware of the incident. The police also asked these people to leave from there.
Aston Wakonabo, who was present at the festival, was standing in line at the photo booth with his girlfriend. Then someone pushed him from behind. When he looked back, the crowd of people was running fast.
“People were hiding, pushing each other and falling to the ground. Baby strollers were also falling. That’s when I heard gunshots,” Wakonabo said.
He said, “When I heard the sound of pop-pop-pop, then I understood that someone was shooting.”
Wakonabo said that after taking his girlfriend to a safe place, he would again go towards the spot. According to him, there he saw many injured people lying on the ground and also took their photographs.
Seattle Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal condemned ‘needless violence’
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal of Seattle.
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, who represents Seattle, condemned the shooting at the Seattle Center as “senseless violence.”
“Our thoughts are with all those affected by this senseless violence,” he wrote on social media.
Jaipal said that he is in touch with Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and Governor Bob Ferguson. Coordination is being done between different levels of the government to gather information about the situation.
He appealed to people to stay away from the area while the active investigation continues.
Food festival is happening since 1982
The ‘Bite of Seattle’ food festival started in 1982. According to the festival’s website, this 3-day long event consists of various programs along with food and drinks and around 3.5 lakh people participate in it.
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