Gunfire on I-5 causes multiple accidents, shuts down freeway
Jul 30, 2012, 6:55 AM | Updated: 8:02 am
Police say a chase that ensued after two groups left a festival in Seattle’s Seward Park left multiple people injured and shut down Interstate-5 for a period on Sunday.
The incident reportedly began around 4 p.m. after the two groups made eye contact at an event at the park. The 20-year-old victim and his 17-year-old nephew tried to leave the area and the other group began pursuing them in their vehicle.
Police report the suspects, traveling in a gray or green car, began shooting at the victim in the 9000 block of Beacon Avenue South. More shots were fired at the intersection of Beacon Avenue South and South Juneau Street.
The chase then headed onto I-5 South. The suspects reportedly caught up and shot at the victim’s vehicle around mid-Boeing Field. The 20-year-old was struck in the shoulder.
The victim’s vehicle then collided with a Kia, occupied by two women not involved in the altercation. The Kia then hit a Toyota minivan that overturned.
When Seattle Fire Department crews arrived on the scene, the gunshot victim, and the two female occupants in the Kia were transported to Harborview Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. The driver of the Toyota was reportedly OK. The victim’s 17-year-old nephew was also not injured.
One more vehicle, driven by a West Seattle man, was hit in the crossfire. The man was not injured and reported the gunfire to police after returning home.
Jeff Kappel, with the Seattle Police Department, says officers are still searching for the other people involved in the shootout Sunday. Seattle Police Gang Unit detectives will be continuing the investigation.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
