Mass Shooting At Highland Park 4Th Of July Parade 5 Dead 16 Hospitalized

Just after noon, Highland Park police said it remained an “active incident” and urged people to stay away. A Chicago Sun-Times reporter saw blankets covering three bloody bodies and five other people wounded and covered in blood near the parade stand. Several witnesses said they heard multiple gunshots. One witness said he counted more than 20 gunshots. Highland Park resident Miles Zaremski told the Sun-Times, “I heard 20 to 25 gunshots, all in quick succession. So it couldn’t have been just a revolver or a shotgun.” Zaremski said he saw “people in that area that were shot,” including “a woman covered in blood . . . He didn’t survive.” The police were telling people, “Everybody disperse, please. It’s not safe to be here.” As they left the parade route on Central Street in downtown Highland Park, marchers left behind chairs, baby carriages and blankets as they sought cover, not knowing exactly what happened. Even as people fled, a klezmer band, seemingly oblivious to the gunfire, continued to play. Police officers from Highland Park and several other jurisdictions, including the Illinois State Police, some armed with rifles, patrolled the area, looking for whoever fired the shots. Adrienne Drell, a former Sun-Times reporter, said she was sitting on a sidewalk along Central Avenue watching the parade when she saw members of the Highland Park High School band start running. “Go to Sunset,” Drell said she heard the students yell, directing people to the nearby Sunset Foods. A man picked her up from the curb and coaxed her out, Drell said. “There is panic throughout the city,” he said. “Everyone is amazed beyond belief.” He ran across to a nearby parking lot with other people watching the parade. “It was a quiet, peaceful, great morning, people were enjoying the parade,” Drell said. “Within seconds, it’s terrifying to suddenly have that peace shattered. You can’t go anywhere, you can’t find peace. I think we’re falling apart.” Terrified revelers fled Highland Park’s Fourth of July parade after a shooting, leaving behind their belongings as they sought safety. Eric Trotter, 37, who lives a few blocks from the shooting, echoed that sentiment. “I was shocked,” Trotter said. “How could this happen in a peaceful community like Highland Park.” Gov. JB Pritzker said he was “closely monitoring the situation in Highland Park” and that Illinois State Police were on the scene. The parade had a strong presence of police and fire engines. Blood was collected at Port Clinton Square in Highland Park. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

title: “Mass Shooting At Highland Park 4Th Of July Parade 5 Dead 16 Hospitalized " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-13” author: “Delores Wells”

Just after noon, Highland Park police said it remained an “active incident” and urged people to stay away. A Chicago Sun-Times reporter saw blankets covering three bloody bodies and five other people wounded and covered in blood near the parade stand. Several witnesses said they heard multiple gunshots. One witness said he counted more than 20 gunshots. Highland Park resident Miles Zaremski told the Sun-Times, “I heard 20 to 25 gunshots, all in quick succession. So it couldn’t have been just a revolver or a shotgun.” Zaremski said he saw “people in that area that were shot,” including “a woman covered in blood . . . He didn’t survive.” The police were telling people, “Everybody disperse, please. It’s not safe to be here.” As they left the parade route on Central Street in downtown Highland Park, panicked marchers left behind chairs, baby carriages and blankets as they sought cover, not knowing exactly what happened. Even as people fled, a klezmer band, seemingly oblivious to the gunfire, continued to play. Police officers from Highland Park and several other jurisdictions, including the Illinois State Police, some armed with rifles, patrolled the area, looking for whoever fired the shots. Adrienne Drell, a former Sun-Times reporter, said she was sitting on a sidewalk along Central Avenue watching the parade when she saw members of the Highland Park High School band start running. “Go to Sunset,” Drell said she heard the students yell, directing people to the nearby Sunset Foods. A man picked her up from the curb and coaxed her out, Drell said. “There is panic throughout the city,” he said. “Everyone is amazed beyond belief.” He ran across to a nearby parking lot with other people watching the parade. “It was a quiet, peaceful, great morning, people were enjoying the parade,” Drell said. “Within seconds, it’s terrifying to suddenly have that peace shattered. You can’t go anywhere, you can’t find peace. I think we’re falling apart.” Terrified revelers fled Highland Park’s Fourth of July parade after a shooting, leaving behind their belongings as they sought safety. Eric Trotter, 37, who lives a few blocks from the shooting, echoed that sentiment. “I was shocked,” Trotter said. “How could this happen in a peaceful community like Highland Park.” As police cars sped down Central Avenue, sirens blaring, Alexander Sandoval, 39, sat on a bench and wept. He was up before 7 a.m. to set up lawn chairs and a blanket in front of the parade’s main stage. He lives nearby, so he went home to have breakfast with his son, partner and stepdaughter before heading back for the parade. Hours later, he said he and his family ran after hearing the gunshots, fearing for their lives. “We saw the marchers and the Navy float go by, and when I first heard the gunshots, I thought it was them saluting the flag and firing blanks,” Sandoval said. “But then I saw people start running and the shooting continued. We started running.” He said that, in the chaos, he and his partner ran in different directions, he with his son, she with her daughter. “I grabbed my son and tried to break into one of the local buildings, but I couldn’t,” Sandoval said. “The shooting has stopped. Probably reloading. So I kept running and ran down an alley and put my son in a dumpster to be safe.” He then said he ran to look for the rest of his family and saw bodies in pools of blood on the ground. “I saw a little boy that was shot walking away,” Sandoval said. “It was just terror.” He found his partner and stepdaughter, safe, inside a McDonald’s nearby. “That doesn’t happen here,” he said. “It shouldn’t happen anywhere.” Gov. JB Pritzker said he was “closely monitoring the situation in Highland Park” and that Illinois State Police were on the scene. The parade had a strong presence of police and fire engines. Blood was collected at Port Clinton Square in Highland Park. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.