At least six children were shot when a scuffle between feuding teens at the National Zoo in Washington erupted in gunfire last night, police and witnesses said.
One of the victims was a 12-year-old boy reported to be in “very grave” condition. Two adults were also hospitalized, though they were not wounded, officials said.
There was no word on any arrests, but police were evacuating the zoo and had cordoned off the streets around it. It was unclear how many of the victims were innocent bystanders.
Witnesses reported the teenagers clashed at the main entrance to the zoo, which was jammed with people marking African-American Family Celebration Day, an Easter Monday tradition.
“It seemed that some kids started to get rowdy a little bit later in the afternoon,” National Zoo spokesman Marc Bretzfelder told The Washington Post. “An argument got out of hand outside the zoo gate.”
At about 6:30 p.m., a bottle was thrown, guns were pulled and shots rang out.
Nakisha Johnson, 17, saw one young man open fire and believed the children shot were bystanders.
“He was just shooting at the people he was fighting,” she said.
The most seriously injured boy was shot in the head, and a girl was shot in the chest, reports said. The conditions of the other children were unknown, but their wounds were not believed to be life-threatening.
The victims were rushed to nearby hospitals. A 14-year-old boy who arrived at Children’s Hospital with a leg wound gave reporters a thumbs-up sign as he was wheeled in.
Two adults – a pregnant woman who felt labor pains and a man who suffered a seizure – were also hospitalized.
Zoo officials said that while some of the wounded were found on the grounds, the shooting happened outside the front gates.
“Some of them came back in after it happened, seeking help, but they were out front when it happened,” Bretzfelder said.