An 11-year-old child was among the five people shot while attending a birthday party in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood Wednesday night, according to police, who are still searching for the people responsible.
The shooting occurred just before 10 p.m. on Greenwood Street, police said. A preliminary investigation revealed that there was a gathering that was interrupted when at least one person shot into the home, police said. When officers arrived, they recovered multiple shell casings.
The other victims shot were two men and two women, who are in their early 20s, police said. All five suffered non-life-threatening injuries and are expected to be OK.
The two women who suffered gunshot wounds while attending the celebration ran over to the home next door and asked for help. Moments later first responders were helping them stop the bleeding while they laid on the kitchen floor.
“They knocked the door and asked for help, 'please help me! Help me! Help me,'’”, said Clara Lantigua who called 911 and helped the shooting victims.
Neighbors say they heard anywhere from 10 to 15 gunshots, some of them hitting a parked SUV across the street. At least two cars were found riddled with bullet holes.
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“It was just boom boom boom boom boom boom real fast,” said Gerard Christian, who lives near the scene of the shooting. "The kids went to run to the window to see the fireworks and it was just too loud to be fireworks so I told them to get out of the window."
“It sounded like a barrage of different firecrackers," said Kimberly Hall. "Where are these young kids getting these guns from? That is scary.”
Neighbors on and near Greenwood Street are terrified after what happened. What was a moment of celebration quickly turned into a moment of condemnation.
"It's sad that nobody is doing anything about sheer gun violence," Hall said.
Mayor Michelle Wu said after several violent incidents just in the last week, things need to change.
"On a summer night like this, we want to make sure that every single street and every community, every part of our city should be enjoyable. And unfortunately, tonight we saw that we have a lot more work to do," she said.
No arrests have been made. Police have been talking to witnesses and reviewing security video.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the Boston Police Department at 617-343-4700. Anonymous tips can also be left at 1-800-494-TIPS.
