Nine people were killed and 26 others injured Sunday morning in a shooting in Dayton, Ohio, authorities said, raising the death toll in a grim week of mass shootings across the U.S.
The suspected shooter, who has not been identified, is also dead, according to police.
The attack came less than a day after a man with an assault-style weapon killed 20 in El Paso and a week after a gunman fired on a garlic festival in Gilroy, Calif., killing three people including a 6-year-old boy and wounding 12 more. With the country still grieving, Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley noted that Dayton’s tragedy was just the latest.
“As a mayor this is a day that we all dread happening,” she said in a Sunday morning news conference. “And certainly what’s very sad as I’ve gotten messages from cities across the country is that so many of us have gone through it.”
The shooting shattered a typical summer weekend night’s revelry in Dayton’s Oregon District, outside the 400 block of East 5th Street and amid a busy nightlife scene of bars and restaurants, according to authorities. Police said officers ended the violence “quickly” by shooting the suspect, who began firing at 1:07 a.m.
The suspect used a .223-caliber high capacity magazine while wearing body armor, according to Whalen. The suspect had additional magazines. Officers neutralized him in under a minute, she said, and that quick response saved lives.
“While this is a terribly sad day for our city, I am amazed by the quick response of Dayton police that saved literally hundreds of lives,” she said, adding that the 26 injured are at area hospitals and that Ohio Governor Mike DeWine — who she has been in contact with — gave his condolences.
Miami Valley Hospital received 16 victims for treatment, spokeswoman Terrea Little told the Associated Press. Kettering Health Network was treating multiple victims as well, spokeswoman Elizabeth Long said, though she did not have numbers.
Authorities said they believe there was only one shooter and have yet to identify the suspect, though they are interviewing dozens of people. The FBI is aiding the investigation. Police have not yet provided the names of victims.
Whaley would not speculate on the gunman’s motive.
“I can’t get inside his head,” Whaley said.
Dayton police department lieutenant colonel Matt Carper said it is too early in the investigation to determine whether the gunman was targeting anyone or any place specifically.
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