7 wounded in shooting at a park in Washington state, police say

LAKEWOOD, Wash. (AP) — Seven people were shot and wounded at a park near Tacoma, Washington, on Wednesday evening where more than 100 people were gathered when gunfire erupted, police said.

Police detectives believe a dispute between two groups escalated to gunshots, Lakewood Police Sgt. Charles Porche said.

Investigators don’t know how many shooters were involved or whether the victims were targeted, he said. No arrests were made in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.

“Unfortunately, there were unintended/uninvolved victims struck during this careless act of violence,” Porche said in a news release. “Detectives will continue to sort through the information gathered to hold those involved accountable for their actions.”

The police spokesman said the victims ranged from a 16-year-old female, who was in stable condition, to a 38-year-old male who was the only person still in critical condition Thursday. He added that two others were in serious condition and the rest stable.

Officers found a “very hectic scene” when they responded to calls reporting shots at Harry Todd Park in Lakewood just before 8 p.m., Porche told KOMO-TV. The park is beside a lake in the suburb just south of Tacoma.

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He said medics transported five people to hospitals and two others went to hospitals on their own. The Seattle Times reported that Porche initially said three people were in critical condition.

More than 100 people were at the park at the time, Porche said, adding the shooting remains under investigation.

“We’ve had these couple days here where the sun finally came out and it’s been a gorgeous time for people to get out and enjoy the park, the lake and then you have something like this that happens,” he said. “It is one of the great tragedies, right? You don’t want anybody to get shot and then you end up with seven different victims that happen out of this act of violence.”

The shooting comes days after a Memorial Day shooting at a Philadelphia park that killed two people and injured nine.