Two people were killed and six others were injured when a pair of gunmen opened fire at a festival celebrating Latino culture in Toronto on Saturday, police said.
Two men were pronounced dead at the scene, while five others suffered gunshot wounds and another was hospitalized with unspecified injuries following the gunfire in the area of St. Clair and Arlington avenues during the Salsa on St. Clair festival, Toronto police said.
“There seemed to be an exchange of gunfire between individuals targeting each other,” Frank Barredo, Toronto Police Service deputy chief, said during a news conference.
Four of the wounded were hospitalized with “serious” injuries, Barredo said.
It wasn’t clear whether the gunmen were among the dead or injured, nor could police say late Saturday whether any shooter was still being sought.
The shooting was reported around 8:12 p.m., Barredo said. An estimated 13,000 people were taking part in the festival, he said.
Two guns were recovered and investigators were focused on three different crime scenes, the chief said, adding that the investigation would be “complex.”
Mayor Olivia Chow expressed anger over the violence, especially because the festival attracts children and families.
“I’m deeply disturbed and angry about this reckless, irresponsible act of violence right in the middle of a festival,” she said at the news conference.
One witness, Pamela Garcia, told Toronto news outlet CP24 that she heard three shots and saw people in the crowd run and scream.
Another witness, Jacy Lin, recalled being at the festival’s salsa stage and seeing everyone suddenly run toward it before police arrived, the music stopped and people began leaving.
“I was walking from here and there was like a yellow tape, and I saw a bunch of paramedics coming down with a man and they were just doing CPR,” Lin said. “And he had, like, an oxygen tank and everything, and he didn’t look well.”
Salsa on St. Clair is an annual two-day festival celebrating Latino culture with music, dance, food and art. It started Saturday and was set to run through Sunday on Toronto’s St. Clair Avenue.
This year’s celebration was the festival’s 22nd year.
