5 people shot along Mardi Gras parade route, police say

Five people including a girl were shot at a Mardi Gras parade Sunday night, New Orleans police said, and at least one was apparently in critical condition. One person was detained at the scene in connection with the gunfire.

Police said it happened along the route of the Krewe of Bacchus parade.

Their initial report was that there were four victims: a girl, a woman and two others. All were brought to hospitals. Later, police said five people were shot: two females, two males and a toddler.

NOPD Chief Deputy Hans Ganthier told CBS New Orleans affiliate WWL-TV one of the victims was in critical condition but he didn’t say which one.

He told WWL police “were quickly able to apprehend the suspect we believe responsible for this” but it was unclear whether anyone else was involved. Two guns were recovered, he added.

“This is really not something we wanted to see,” said Ganthier. “We really wanted this to be a safe Mardi Gras.”

The parade was temporarily held up but then allowed to continue, WWL reported.

An eyewitness told the station at least a dozen shots rang out and people were falling all over themselves trying to get out of the way, leaving everything they had behind them.

The eyewitness said there were several skirmishes that officers broke up before the shooting in the vicinity of where the gunfire happened.

Journalist Jonah Gilmore spoke to another eyewitness: