2 dead, 9 injured in Memorial Day shooting in Philadelphia: Police
Two people were killed and nine others were injured in a shooting at Philadelphia's Fairmount Park on Memorial Day, authorities said.
A male and female adult victim were pronounced dead, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said at a media briefing early on May 27.
The other nine victims are in stable condition. Three of the injured are juveniles between 15 and 17 years old, Bethel said.
Bethel said witnesses reported hearing gunshots at the park around 10:27 p.m. local time on May 26.
Officials have not recovered any weapons, and no arrests have been made.
A large number of adults were present at the park when the shooting occurred, Bethel said.
"They were packing up as this incident unfolded," Bethel said.
Officers will review social media posts as part of their investigation, he added.
Bethel said officials believe the weapon used may have been modified using a switch.
"It's pretty rapid fire so we're pretty confident that there probably was a switch on this gun," Bethel said.
A switch is a device that converts a semi-automatic Glock pistol to function as a machine gun, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Memorial Day shooting: South Carolina shooting leaves at least 11 hospitalized in Horry County
Fairmount Park spans about 2,000 acres in northern Philadelphia, according to Visit Philadelphia. The area is generally popular outside of holidays like Memorial Day, Bethel said.
"It's not uncommon for us to have large groups of individuals surge into the park," Bethel said. "We deal with those on a regular basis."
Bethel also added that the area was not well lit at the time of the shooting.
Bethel also emphasized the gravity of the holiday during which the shooting occurred.
"This is significant," Bethel said. "It's Memorial Day — a day where we honor those who gave their lives in war. So we understand the significance of this event and we will make sure to provide an update later today."
Memorial Day, traditionally observed on the last Monday of May, is a federal holiday in the United States dedicated to honoring military personnel who have died in the line of duty.
This story has been updated with additional information.
Contributing: Reuters
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at melina.khan@usatoday.com.
(This story was updated to include video.)
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fairmount Park, Philadelphia shooting: 2 dead, 9 injured
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