Center City Residents Upset After Barrage Of Bullets Sends 3 Young Men To Hospital
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A barrage of bullets in Philadelphia's Washington Square West neighborhood sent three young people to the hospital. Police say a 19-year-old man and two 20-year-old men were all struck by gunfire.
The shooting happened just before 11 p.m. Sunday. Over 60 evidence markers lined 13th Street, between Pine and Lombard Streets. Several cars were also hit by flying bullets.
The people injured in the shooting are expected to be OK. But neighbors say they're upset after having to look at bullet holes in cars and homes.
"I was lying in bed and I heard, 'boom, boom, boom' and it was a lot, and it was loud," Cinda Curran, who lives nearby said.
Curran was jolted out of bed Sunday night as gunfire erupted in Center City.
"It's not normal but it's very shocking, and just a week ago there was something a couple blocks the other way," Curran said. "It's concerning."
It's not clear what led up to the shooting, but afterward, police say a man boarded a SEPTA bus and went across town to 23rd and Lombard Streets in Graduate Hospital. He had been shot in the leg.
Police believe two more victims walked four blocks from the scene of the shooting to Jefferson Hospital.
"It's terrifying. It's scary, it really is," resident Michael Monte said. "You know, I'm supposed to call this space my home, it's where I sleep, where my family sleeps. I am a gun owner myself and in that situation, you can't do anything but hide, run, and, you know, it's scary. It is."
Monte's house was hit twice by the gunfire. He wasn't home at the time, but his mother and sister were outside when the shooting happened. They were not injured.
"The fact that it happened on this street, in this area in the heart of the city is unbelievable," Monte said.
The Center City street is now a spectacle as people walk by for the sole purpose of pointing out bullet holes and walking past evidence markers scattered across the concrete.
"I was just tryna reflect on what must've gone down. I guess it was two people firing across the street, I assume. I don't know but it's shocking that it was so early," Paul Lench said.
"I ducked behind my bed and when the shots subsided I kinda ducked low to stay behind the concrete in my building and peeked out the window. And I saw a Black guy walking back to his SUV, a black SUV, holding his pants up. I think I saw the gun in his hand, I wasn't sure," said a neighbor who wished to remain anonymous.
She says she heard the sound of about 30 gunshots before seeing someone who she believes was involved drive off.
"I hope I don't have to be a witness in court because you know that gets dangerous," she said.
The shooting left several people Eyewitness News spoke with angry enough to pack up and move out.
"My lease is already up and I was already moving and it just solidifies that I'm making the right choice. There's no reason to live in Center City anymore," one resident said.
Police have not said what led up to the shooting, but it's possible there was a party going on.
CBS3's Howard Monroe and Jasmine Payoute contributed to this report.
For a list of gun violence resources in Philadelphia, click here.
