What is known about the mass shooting in a parade for the 4th of July in the United States

At least six people died and 24 were injured in a shooting occurred Monday during an Independence Day parade in Highland Parka suburb of Chicago, USAand authorities are searching for a suspect who likely shot festivities from a rooftop, police said.

The police commander of Highland ParkChris O’Neill, incident commander at the scene, urged people to shelter in place while authorities search for the suspectdescribed as a white male wearing a white or blue t-shirt.

Police search a building after a mass shooting at the 4th of July parade in Highland Park, a Chicago suburb, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

LOOK: US shooting: Police looking for a white man between 18 and 20 years old who is armed with a rifle

Christopher Covelli, a spokesman for the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force, told a news conference that the gunman apparently opened fire on parade attendees from a roof with a rifle that authorities recovered at the scene. Covelli did not know from which building the shots were fired.

Blood trails at the scene of the shooting in Highland Park, Illinois. (Lynn Sweet/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

The spokesman added that the police believe that there was only one aggressor and suggested that he must still be armed and dangerous.

Police have not released any details about deaths or injuries.

The parade started around 10:00 in the morning, but stopped suddenly 10 minutes later, when shots were heard. Hundreds of attendees, some visibly bloodied, fled the parade, leaving behind chairs, prams and blankets.

???? #NOW | Shooter opens fire during a 4th of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois. They confirm several dead and wounded. pic.twitter.com/a1w52zoBQF

— World in Conflict ???? (@MundoEClicto) July 4, 2022

A reporter from the Chicago Sun-Times he saw blankets placed over three bloodied bodies. Several witnesses told the newspaper that they heard gunshots.

“Everyone disperse, please. It’s not safe to be here.” the police asked those present.

the police of Highland Park It was excluded in a statement issued Monday morning that five people died and 19 were taken to hospitals, but those figures were updated shortly after at the news conference.

A video taken by a Sun-Times reporter after the shooting shows a band in a float continuing to play as people run past screaming. A photo posted on social media appears to show pools of blood near overturned chairs in downtown Highland Park.

My video.. I was at #Highland Park parade.. Terrific people fleeing July 4th parade when shooting started. pic.twitter.com/DSe0NJOuem

— Lynn Sweet (@lynnsweet) July 4, 2022

Gina Troiani and her son were lined up with their kindergarten class, ready to enter the parade route, when she he heard a loud sound that he thought was fireworks, until he heard people yelling about a shooter.

“We started running in the opposite direction,” commented The Associated Press.

Her 5-year-old son rode his bicycle decorated with curly red and blue ribbons. He and other children in the group held small American flags. The municipal authorities indicated on their website that the festivities were to include a parade of bicycles and pets for children.

Troiani said she pushed her son’s bike, running through the neighborhood to get back to her car.

Police are deployed after the shooting at a July 4 parade in the wealthy suburb of Highland Park, Illinois, United States, July 4, 2022. (ABC WLS/ABC7 via REUTERS)

In a video that Troiani recorded on his phone, some of the children are visibly startled by the loud noise, then move to the side of the road as a siren sounds.

“It was a kind of chaos”, commented. “There were people who were separated from their families, looking for them. Others just dropped what they were carrying, grabbed their kids and went running.”

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said in a tweet that he is “closely monitoring the situation in Highland Park” and that the Illinois State Police are providing assistance. State police detailed in an email that he was assisting in the response to a reported active shooter around 10:24 a.m.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office tweeted that it is assisting Highland Park Police “with a shooting in the area of ​​the Independence Day parade route.”

Empty chairs line the sidewalk after parade goers fled due to a shooting in Highland Park, United States, on Monday, July 4, 2022. (Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

Source: Elcomercio