One person was murdered and up to 21 people, including children, were injured in a shooting Wednesday afternoon at Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., during a celebration for the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory, according to officials.
The Kansas City radio station KKFI revealed that one of its disc jockeys, Lisa Lopez, a mother of two, was killed in the violence that followed the march.
“It is with deep regret and a broken heart that we inform our community that KKFI DJ Lisa Lopez, presenter of Taste of Tejano, died tonight in the shooting at the KC Chiefs rally. “Our hearts and prayers are with her family,” the station stated in a Facebook statement on Wednesday.
“This senseless act has taken a beautiful person from her family and this KC Community,” the message went on to say.
The identify of the lady shot has yet to be disclosed by police. The number of victims in this shooting is still being determined as law enforcement conducts their investigation.
Officers arrested three persons, Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves announced at the day’s second press conference, adding to the earlier figure of two suspects apprehended.
One person was apprehended following a foot chase with cops, she added.
“I’m angry about what happened today,” Graves stated earlier in the evening. “The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment.”
“This is not Kansas City,” she stated at the conclusion of the press conference.
Graves stated that the motivation for the shooting is yet unknown. At least one firearm has been found, she added.
“The Super Bowl is the most unifying event in America,” President Biden declared. “To see this exhilaration converted into sadness in Kansas City today strikes a profound chord with the American psyche. “Today’s events should move, shock, and shame us into action.”
Vice President Kamala Harris commented, “Today was intended to be a day of celebration and pleasure in Kansas City. Instead, America has seen another day of mindless gun violence. It does not have to be this way.
It’s unclear yet how many fans attended the celebration, but NPR member station KCUR said that during last year’s victory parade
close to 1 million flooded downtown for the rally.
In preparation for the expected crowd size Wednesday, 800 law enforcement officers were on scene for the parade, Graves said. The heavy police presence helped in guiding fans to safety once the shooting began and also in administering life-saving aid to gunshot victims, she said.
The shooting, west of Union Station, started right after the parade rally ended, Graves said. Videos of the scene that were shared on social media show crowds of people running away from Union Station as officers rushed in.
Many families were in attendance
According to KCUR, youngsters’s Mercy Hospital received 12 patients from the event, including 11 youngsters and nine with gunshot wounds. Fire Chief Ross Grundyson could not immediately confirm the victims’ ages. However, physicians and administrators from youngsters’s Mercy affirmed during a news conference that they treated the youngsters. Their ages varied from six to fifteen.
During Wednesday’s news conference, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said that he had considered bringing his own child to the celebration. He attended the procession with his wife and mother, he added.
“I, like many others, ran for safety,” when the shooting began, Lucas said.
In a message directed at the city’s residents, the mayor said he is angry and “heartbroken.”
“This is a day that a lot of people look forward to, something they remember for a lifetime. What they shouldn’t have to remember is the threat of gun violence marring a day like this, injuring them and their families,” he said.
Other dignitaries were at the victory rally, as well.
They included Missouri Gov. Mike Parson and first lady Teresa Parson, as well as Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly.
“State law enforcement officers are aiding local authorities with reaction operations. “As we wait to learn more, our hearts go out to the victims,” Governor Parson wrote on X, previously Twitter.
Kelly stated that she was removed from the site and is “out of harm’s way.”
Mayor Lucas stated that the Chiefs had contacted officials and that all of the team’s players, coaches, and staff were safe.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who had been riding triumphantly through the city only hours earlier, also rushed to social media after learning of the tragedy. He wrote: “Praying for Kansas City…”
The day began with hundreds of applauding supporters dressed in the team’s colours of red, gold, and white as members rode a bus through downtown.
The march was set to begin at 11 a.m. local time, with a demonstration following at Union Station about 12:45 p.m.
Police reported shots fired at roughly 2:30 p.m. CST.
According to KCUR, this tragedy comes after Kansas City set a murder record in 2023. Last year, 185 homicides were reported, the highest in history and breaking the previous record established in 2020.