Dozens of people were injured in a shooting Monday on Hollywood Beach Boulevard, Florida, over a dispute between two groups during a Memorial Day celebration.
As of 9 p.m. Monday, officers with the Hollywood Police Department had already taken one suspect into custody and were searching for another, said Dianna Bettynsky, a spokeswoman for the organization, who identified the person of interest as one with the dreaded man. Described as a black person. Black sleeveless shirt and camouflage shorts.
Officers took the victims to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood and Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital. Information about his condition was not immediately available.
Bettinschi said Hollywood police received a call of gunshots at around 6:45 p.m. on Johnson Street, west of the Hollywood Beach Theater.
City webcams captured the ensuing chaos.
Hollywood Beach resident Jamie Ward said he arrived in the area about five minutes after the shots were heard.
He saw a man sitting with his leg bandaged, another being carried on a stretcher to an ambulance, and a woman who had been shot while sitting on the sand.
“Obviously, a fight that happened on the boulevard turned into something else… these innocent people paid for it,” he said.
Detectives are now asking the public to send photos and videos of the incident to hollywoodpdtips@hollywoodfl.org.
He urged the population to avoid going anywhere near Johnson and Garfield Streets as well as the boulevard due to the ongoing investigation.
“Police have got the spot under control. I think there’s no continued danger, but obviously this is one of those situations where it’s probably best to get out of the area and go home,” Raylynn Storey, a spokeswoman for the city of Hollywood, told the Herald early Monday.
Hollywood Police have set up a reunification center at the intersection of Johnson Street and North Ocean Bus Park for anyone looking for a family member or information about their parked car.
Hollywood Beach is a popular beach located approximately 11 miles (17 kilometers) south of Fort Lauderdale and 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Miami.
