3 mass shootings happened overnight in 3 U.S. states, namely Austin in Texas, Chicago, and Savannah in Georgia. The deadly incidents left 2 people dead and at least 30 others wounded. A rash of mass shootings in such a short span of time has added insult to injury in the United States, where many mass shootings have happened since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The three shootings have again left people lamenting the deaths of the victims and criticising the perpetrators of the attacks for being depraved.
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The attacks took place late Friday or early Saturday in the Texas Capital of Austin, Chicago and Savannah in Georgia.
In Austin, authorities said they have arrested one of the two male suspects and the other remains at large, after a shooting took place early Saturday on a crowded pedestrian-only street packed with bars and restaurants. As a result of the shooting, 14 people were left wounded, including two critically injured in the gunfire. The city’s interim police chief said almost all the victims of the shooting in Austin were innocent bystanders.
Joseph Chacon, Interim Austin Police Chief:
We have two victims that remain in critical condition, and then we have 12 victims that right now are in stable condition. Almost all of those victims are innocent bystanders. They are not involved in this, to acknowledge at this point.
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The Interim Police Chief also mentioned the gunfire is believed to have been as a result of a dispute between the two male suspects. One of the suspects was a black man, according to the police.
Another mass shooting took place in Chicago, where a woman was killed and nine others were wounded when two men opened fire on a group standing on a sidewalk in the Chatham neighbourhood in the southern part of the city. The shooters also left the scene right away and hadn’t been identified by mid-afternoon today.
And a conflict between two groups in an apartment complex in the south Georgian city of Savannah led to the third mass shooting on the same day. A man was killed and seven others were wounded. Two of the wounded are children. The city’s mayor vowed to get to the bottom of the incident, and promised to find those accountable.
A rash of mass shootings on a day has left Americans flabbergasted, criticising the perpetrators of the attacks for being depraved.
The attacks come amid an easing of anti-virus restrictions in much of the country, including Chicago, which lifted many of its remaining restrictions on Friday, following the latest CDC guidelines.
Many believe a spike in U.S. shootings and homicides since the onset of the pandemic is not only because of racism, but also a rise in gun ownership and controversy over policing in the United States.
As police continues to study the evidence available with a fine-tooth comb, it goes without saying that healing the divided United States will still be a herculean and arduous task.
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