LELAND, Miss. — Homecoming festivities at high schools in Mississippi were marred by violence, with shootings occurring at two separate locations across the state on Friday night. The incidents resulted in at least six fatalities and numerous injuries, according to authorities.
Four of the deceased were killed in downtown Leland following a homecoming football game in the Mississippi Delta, located on the state’s western border, reported a state senator on Saturday.
Around 20 individuals were injured when gunfire erupted after the crowd gathered in downtown Leland post-game, stated state Sen. Derrick Simmons. Among the injured, four were in critical condition and were flown from a hospital in nearby Greenville to a larger medical facility in Jackson, the state capital, Simmons informed The Associated Press.
Simmons noted that he received updates on the developments from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and other Delta law enforcement agencies.
“People were simply gathering and enjoying themselves in Leland’s downtown area,” Simmons said, referring to the town which has a population of under 4,000 residents.
He was told that after the gunfire, the scene was “very chaotic,” as police, sheriff’s deputies and ambulances “responded from all over.”
“It’s just senseless gun violence,” he said. “What we are experiencing now is just a proliferation of guns just being in circulation.”
No arrests have been announced, and Simmons said late Saturday morning that he had not heard any information about possible suspects.
“They are on the ground working and I have all the faith in the world that they will get to the bottom of this,” he said.
“As the area’s state senator, we urge anyone with any information concerning the tragic shooting last night to step forward and share whatever details they may have,” he added.
Meanwhile, police in the small Mississippi town of Heidelberg in the eastern part of the state are investigating a shooting during that community’s homecoming weekend that left two people dead.
Both of them were killed on the school campus Friday night, Heidelberg Police Chief Cornell White said. He declined to say whether the victims were students or provide other information about the crimes.
“Right now we’ve still got a subject at large, but I can’t give specifics,” White said Saturday morning.
An 18-year-old man was being sought for questioning in the Heidelberg shooting, the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. The sheriff asked that anyone with information contact the police chief or sheriff’s office.
The shooting in Heidelberg happened on the school campus where the Heidelberg Oilers were playing their homecoming football game Friday night. The town of about 640 residents is about 85 miles (137 kilometers) southeast of the state capital of Jackson.
It wasn’t clear exactly when the gunfire occurred or how close it was to the stadium. White said he was at the scene Saturday investigating, and that more information might be released in coming days.
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