KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Eight children were among 22 people hit by gunfire in a shooting at the end of Wednesday's parade to celebrate the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl win, authorities said, as terrified fans ran for cover and another high-profile public event was marred by gunfire. One person was killed.
Kansas City police said shots were fired west of Union Station near the garage and several people were struck. The Chiefs had vacated the stage before the shooting started.
"As soon as the rally concluded, there were shots fired on the west side of Union Station," said Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves, adding, "I know one of the suspects was immediately pursued on foot."
Graves said three people had been taken into custody. She said she has heard that fans may have been involved in apprehending a suspect but couldn't immediately confirm that.
"I'm angry at what happened today. The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment." Graves said. Police did not immediately release any details about the people taken into custody or a possible motive for the shootings.
Social media users posted video of police running through a crowded scene as people in attendance hurriedly scrambled for cover or ran away. One video showed someone apparently performing chest compressions on a shooting victim as another person, seemingly writhing in pain, lay on the ground nearby. People screamed in the background.
Another video showed two onlookers chase and tackle someone, holding that person down until two police officers arrived.
FAN KILLED
The person killed in the shooting was Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a Johnson County mother of two and disc jockey in Kansas City, friends confirmed to The Kansas City Star after talking to the family.
Lopez-Galvan is reported to have died during surgery from a gunshot wound to her abdomen Wednesday at University Health.
"She was the most wonderful, beautiful person," said Lisa Lopez, a friend for decades (no relation) who also works as The Kansas City Star's newsroom executive administrative assistant. "She was a local DJ. She did everybody's weddings. We all know her. She was so full of life."
Lopez-Galvan, who lived in Shawnee, was in her mid-40s, married, with two adult children. She was a disc jockey at KKFI, the community radio station, and co-host of the program Tejano Tuesday.
Mayor Quinton Lucas, who attended the celebration with his wife and mother, said he was heartbroken and angry.
"This is absolutely a tragedy, the likes of which we never would have expected in Kansas City, the likes of which we'll remember for some time," Lucas said.
Previously, Lucas has joined with mayors across the country in calling for new laws to reduce gun violence, including mandating universal background checks.
"I think that's something that all of us who are parents, who are just regular people living each day, have to decide what we wish to do about," Lucas said. "Parades, rallies, schools, movies. It seems like almost nothing is safe."
'EVERYBODY DOWN!'
Lisa Money of Kansas City, Kan., was trying to gather some confetti near the end of the parade when she heard somebody yell, "Down, down, everybody down!"
At first Money thought somebody might be joking until she saw the SWAT team jumping over the fence.
"I can't believe it really happened. Who in their right mind would do something like this? This is supposed to be a day of celebration for everybody in the city and the surrounding area, and then you've got some idiot that wants to come along and do something like this," she said.
Gabe Wallace, a sophomore at Shawnee Mission East, heard the gunshots and hopped a barricade, scraping his head on the concrete. He lost track of his friends.
What he was thinking? "My friends are dead."
University Health spokeswoman Nancy Lewis said the hospital was treating eight gunshot victims. Two were in critical condition and six were in stable condition, she said. The hospital also was treating four people for other injuries resulting from the chaos after the shooting, Lewis said.
Lisa Augustine, spokesperson for Children's Mercy Kansas City, said the hospital was treating 12 patients from the rally, including 11 children, some of whom suffered gunshot wounds.
St. Luke's Hospital of Kansas City received one gunshot patient in critical condition and three walk-in patients with injuries that were not life-threatening, spokesperson Laurel Gifford said.
"When you have this many casualties, it's going to get spread out among a lot of hospitals so that you don't overwhelm any single ER," she said.
CHIEFS STEP UP
Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder said he was with coach Andy Reid and other coaches and staff members at the time of the shooting, and that the team was on buses and returning to Arrowhead Stadium.
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported Chiefs players helped comfort people.
"The Chiefs left the parade in buses, and in shock. I'm told players were UNBELIEVABLE calming panicked kids down. Blaine Gabbert, Tre Smith, Austin Reiter, Chris Oladukun all rallied," Breer wrote on X.
"Smith went to one upset kid, gave him the WWE title belt and sat with him till he calmed down."
"Praying for Kansas City," Chiefs quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes said in a post on X, that also included three emojis of hands in prayer.
Missouri's Republican Gov. Mike Parson and first lady Teresa Parson were at the parade during the gunfire but were unhurt. "Thanks to the professionalism of our security officers and first responders, Teresa and I and our staff are safe and secure," Parson said in a statement. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly also had to be evacuated and posted on social media that she was now "out of harm's way."
President Joe Biden has been briefed on the shooting in Kansas City and will continue to receive updates, a White House spokesperson said. White House officials have been in touch with state and local leaders, and federal law enforcement is on the scene supporting local law enforcement.
Areas that had been filled with crowds were empty after the shooting, with police and firefighters standing and talking behind an area restricted by yellow tape.
Throngs had lined the route, with fans climbing trees and street poles, or standing on rooftops for a better view. Players rolled through the crowd on double-decker buses, DJs and drummers heralding their arrival. Owner Clark Hunt was on one of those buses, holding the Lombardi Trophy.
The city and the team each chipped in around $1 million for the event commemorating Travis Kelce, Mahomes and the Chiefs becoming the first team since Tom Brady and the New England Patriots two decades ago to successfully defend their title.
Kansas City has long struggled with gun violence, and in 2020 it was among nine cities targeted by the U.S. Justice Department in an effort to crack down on violent crime. In 2023 the city matched a record with 182 homicides, most of which involved guns.
It is the latest sports celebration in the U.S. marred by gunfire after a shooting last year in downtown Denver after the Nuggets' winning an NBA championship that injured several people and shots last year at a parking lot near the Texas Rangers' World Series championship parade.
Information for this article was contributed by Pete Grathoff, Eric Adler and Andrea Klick of The Kansas City Star (TNS);by Heather Hollingsworth, Nick Ingram, Scott McFetridge, Jim Salter, Josh Funk, Summer Ballentine, and John Hanna of The Associated Press; and by Jesus Jiménez and Jacey Fortin of The New York Times.
The Kansas City Chiefs celebrate during their victory parade in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
A young Kansas City Chiefs fan waits for the Super Bowl victory rally to start in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
Fans watch as the Kansas City Chiefs celebrate during their victory rally at Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
A Kansas City Chiefs fan wears a Native American headdress at a Super Bowl victory rally in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
Kansas City Chiefs fans celebrate during a victory rally in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
The Kansas City Chiefs celebrate during their victory parade in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, left, watches Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay dance with a teddy bear head during their victory rally in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
Former Kansas City Chiefs player Dwayne Bowe takes selfies with fans at the Chiefs Super Bowl victory rally in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
Kansas City Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy as their bus arrives at the victory rally in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers Sunday in the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
Two people hug over police tape after shots were fired near the Kansas City Super Bowl victory parade Wednesday in Kansas City, Mo. (The New York Times/Christopher Smith)
Law enforcement personnel investigate following a shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl celebration Monday in Kansas City, Mo. (AP/Reed Hoffmann)