US: Several wounded in shooting at Detroit area water park

World Sunday 16/June/2024 16:36 PM
By: DW
US: Several wounded in shooting at Detroit area water park

Detroit: At least eight people — including children — were wounded after a shooter opened fire at a city-run water park in the United States Detroit suburb in the state of Michigan on Saturday, authorities said.

Police said the suspect had been cornered in a home nearby, with law enforcement surrounding it, before announcing he took his own life inside the home.

The incident occurred at 5 p.m. local time (2100 GMT) at the Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad park in Rochester Hills, Michigan, where several families had gathered to escape the summer heat.

A man fired about 30 shots from a 9mm semi automatic Glock, reloading several times, as he stepped out of a vehicle in front of the park, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard told reporters.

A handgun and three empty magazines were recovered from the scene, the sheriff added.

The wounded were rushed to hospital, and their conditions were not immediately known.

Rochester Hills lies about 15 miles (24 kilometres) south of Oxford, which was the scene of a mass shooting in 2021 when a 15-year-old fatally shot four high school students.

"It's a gut punch, obviously, for us here in Oakland County," Bouchard said. "We've gone through so many tragedies, you know. We're not even fully comprehending what happened at Oxford."

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer wrote on social media platform  X, formerly Twitter, that she was in touch with officials.