Shootings in the US stain Independence Day.
Photo: Sue Gerrits/Getty Images
At least 8 people died in shootings that occurred in the states of Texas and Pennsylvaniaproduced in the hours before the US celebrates Independence Day this Tuesday, a day that, according to statistics, is usually one of the most violent of the year.
Police in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, reported that A man was arrested Monday night after shooting indiscriminately against several people in the Kingsessing neighborhood, in the southwest of the city.
Five people died in this event and two more, two under the age of 2 and 13, were injured. The man was wearing a bulletproof vest and had several magazines, an AR 15 assault rifle and a pistol.
In another violent event registered in the city of Forth Worth, in the state of Texas, at least three people died and eight were injured (including a minor) after a shooting in a parking lot, the city Police department reported.
So far no arrests have been made and the motive for the shooting is unknown. The event occurred on the day in which the Como neighborhood celebrated its local festivals and when there was a large crowd gathered in the parking lot.
These two events were the deadliest in recent hoursin which according to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA), a non-profit project that follows armed violence in the United States, at least 35 people died in various violent events, with dozens injured.
The United States celebrates Independence Day this Tuesday, a day that according to statistics is usually more violent than normal.
According to research by Professor James Alan Fox of Boston’s Northeastern University, using figures from the Gun Violence Archive, the country has witnessed five mass shootings every Independence Day on average over the past decade, more than on any other day of the year.
Last year, for example, a man armed with a semi-automatic rifle opened fire at a 4th of July parade in Highland Park, Illinoiskilling seven people and injuring almost fifty.
This year, the municipality will hold a remembrance ceremony and a march, without floats or artists, along the route that the parade normally travels.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, so far in 2023 there have been 345 mass shootings.
The organization defines a mass shooting as one that ends with four victims, whether dead or wounded, not including the perpetrator of the attack if he died or was injured during the event.
With information from Efe.
Keep reading:
• Five dead and eight wounded in shooting in Philadelphia; two are children
• Shooting in Philadelphia leaves 4 dead and 2 wounded; police report suspect in custody
• At least 50 injured and four dead as a result of the violent weekend in Chicago
