Early Friday morning, three people were killed in two separate shootings in West Philadelphia, while more than 150 shots were fired in Kensington and no victims were found, police said. The gun violence didn't stop there as bullets flew at a Northeast Philadelphia Wawa.
“We’ve had several very quiet days in the last few weeks, and tonight, for some reason, it was unusually busy,” Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small told reporters at one of Friday morning’s four crime scenes.
The first shooting happened on the 200 block of South Saint Bernard Street shortly after midnight, when Philadelphia police said two men were shot dead inside of a running car.
According to police, someone may have been firing at the car and the victims were returning fire from inside. A gun was found on the lap of the passenger. Police weren’t able to immediately identify either of the victims.
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About an hour later, a man was shot and killed on the 700 block of South Cecil Street in Cobbs Creek, police said. The man in his late 20s was found on the street, shot in the thigh, wrist and hip. Officers rushed him to the hospital where he died shortly after 1:30 a.m. Police said the victim lived in the neighborhood.
Across the city in Kensington, police said well over 150 shots were fired on Coral Street around 4 a.m. Investigators said they found about 200 bullet casings, including rifle rounds, several different caliber semi-automatic handgun rounds, and at least three magazines, or clips.
“It was a lot of rounds fired, more than I’ve ever seen in my career, and I’ve had a long career,” Small said. “Over a 100 spent shell casings, and at this time, still no blood and no victims found.”
Just minutes later in Northeast Philadelphia, police said a man was grazed by a bullet when someone opened fire at a Wawa on Frankford Avenue. The man was hospitalized in stable condition. Small said they believe the gunfire was a result of an argument inside the convenience store.
In the early stages of the investigations, Philly police believed all of the shootings were isolated incidents. No arrests were made as of Friday morning.
Entering Friday, at least 447 people had been killed in Philadelphia, according to police. That's down 4% from last year, which wound up the deadliest on record.
There are additional resources for people or communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Further information can be found here.
