At least one person was killed and up to 15 injured in shots fired on the sidelines of the Super Bowl celebration in Kansas City. The local police and fire department announced this on Wednesday evening (CET). Three of the injured were in critical condition, ABC television reported.
According to investigators, numerous shots were fired and several people were hit near a parking garage at the central train station in the city of 500,000 in the US state of Missouri. Two armed suspects were arrested. “Please leave the area as quickly and safely as possible,” the authorities asked. A large number of police and fire departments were deployed.
The investigators initially did not provide any information about the background to the crime or the identity of the alleged perpetrators and the victims.
The White House in Washington announced that US President Joe Biden had been informed about the incident.
At the time of the shooting, hundreds of thousands of fans in the city had been celebrating the Kansas City Chiefs’ win of the American Football League NFL for hours, including with a street parade. The team won the Super Bowl against the San Francisco 49ers in Las Vegas on Sunday, for the fourth time overall.
Team players such as Patrick Mahomes expressed their deep sadness about the fatal shots on social networks. “I’m praying for Kansas City,” the star quarterback wrote on X, formerly Twitter. All Kansas City Chiefs players, coaches and staff are safe, said Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated several times since it was first published.
Sources: Kansas City Police Department, ABC News, DPA, AFP and Reuters news agencies
