DUMAS, Ark. — Six children were among 28 people wounded Saturday night during what state police called the largest mass shooting in Arkansas history.
Update 5:23 p.m. EDT March 20: Col. Bill Bryant, director of the Arkansas State Police, confirmed the revised casualty count during a Sunday afternoon news conference. He also identified the victim who died in the shooting as 23-year-old Cameron Schaffer, KARK reported.
The shooting occurred outside the annual Hood-Nic car show in Dumas, Arkansas, just after 8 p.m. EDT.
The injured children ranged in age from 19 months to 11 years old and all suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to officials with Arkansas Children’s Hospital
“Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock received 6 patients under 18 with gunshot wounds from the incident, none fatal. Most of the patients have been treated and released,” Hilary DeMillo, media relations manager for the hospital, told CNN in an email.
Meanwhile, Bryant confirmed that one person believed to be connected to the shooting is currently in custody on an unrelated charge. Investigators believe that the shooting started with two individuals getting into a gunfight, but gang involvement is not suspected, and officers are still searching for additional suspects, KARK reported.
— Gov. Asa Hutchinson (@AsaHutchinson) March 20, 2022
Update 11:11 a.m. EDT March 20: Arkansas State Police revised the casualty count in a statement released Sunday morning, saying one person was killed and at least 24 others wounded. Police confirmed that one person is in custody and an investigation is ongoing to identify others who may have been shooting into the crowd.
DUMAS SHOOTING INCIDENT REMAINS UNDER INVESTIGATION The Arkansas State Police is continuing to assist the Dumas Police...
Posted by Arkansas State Police on Sunday, March 20, 2022
Update 7:42 a.m. EDT March 20: One person is in custody, according to Dumas Police Chief Keith Finch, though multiple shooters may have been involved, according to The Associated Press.
Arkansas police say at least 1 person was killed and 20 others wounded, including children, in a shooting outside a car show. The chief of police in Dumas said it wasn’t immediately clear how many kids had been hurt, and a person of interest is in custody. https://t.co/j5YOR0TdW9
— The Associated Press (@AP) March 20, 2022
Update 11:49 p.m. EDT March 19: Organizers of the event where the shooting happened said it promoted nonviolence.
The Delta Neighborhood Empowerment Youth Organization had sponsored the Hood-Nic event for 16 years Wallace McGhee told KARK.
Update 10:43 p.m. EDT March 19: At least one person has died and officials have told KARK that children were among the victims. But they did say it did not appear to be a ‘mass shooter situation.”
#BREAKING: One of the investigators tells me at least one person died, and children were also shot. #ARNews https://t.co/1Z1giVpkst
— Andrew Epperson (@eppersports) March 20, 2022
Update 10:30 p.m. EDT March 19: Desha County Office of Emergency Management said officials are investigating two separate incidents. One was a high-speed chase that ended with a head-on crash.
The second happened in a parking lot where a car show was being held. Multiple victims are being taken to local hospitals including one child, KARK reported.
Original report: The shootings happened outside of a business in Dumas, southeast of Little Rock, KARK reported.
#BREAKING: Arkansas State Police confirm at least ten people have been shot at a car show in Dumas. #ARNews
— Mitchell McCoy (@MitchellMcCoy) March 20, 2022
It is not known how bad the injuries were.
The shooting happened around 7:25 p.m. local time, NBC News reported.
Check back for more on this developing story.
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