Gunman shoots 5 people at West Indian Day Parade in New York City, police say

A gunman opened fire on a crowd along the route of the annual West Indian American Day Parade in New York City, striking at least five people and sparking a manhunt for a male suspect.

At around 2:35 p.m., a gunman in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn stepped on a concrete divider between an access road and a large group of people watching the parade and fired into the crowd. Police said the gunman was targeting a specific group of people.

Five people were hit, including four men and a woman; two of the victims were in critical condition Monday afternoon, said John Chell, chief of patrol for the New York Police Department.

“This was an intentional act by one person against a group of people,” Chell said. “We certainly do not have an active shooter or anything like that here.”

Chell said there was “numerous video footage” of the shooting and the subsequent rampage, and he urged witnesses to provide the footage to police.

“We need this video,” he said. “We will solve the problem, but it will take a lot of work.”

The parade, which was attended by New York Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul, continued into the night after the shooting. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also attended the event and released a statement on X about the incident.

“I am saddened and disturbed by the horrific shooting that occurred as we marched together in the West Indian Day Festival and Parade in Brooklyn,” he said. “Thank you to our first responders on the scene. I am praying for everyone affected. We must continue to work to end gun violence in America.”

Now in its 57th year, the festival is the city's largest celebration of Caribbean culture, attracting around two million people each year. The parade, which goes down Eastern Parkway, is the highlight of New York Caribbean Carnival week and is preceded by several days of festivals and soca and steelpan performances.

The event has been marred by violence before. In 2016, two people were shot during J'Ouvert, the early-morning festivities that begin hours before the annual parade begins. The year before, an aide to then-Governor Andrew Cuomo was fatally shot during J'Ouvert. In 2014, one man was shot and two others were injured during pre-parade festivities.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Gunman shoots into crowd, wounding five at New York parade