Mass Shooting at MLK Memorial Event in Florida's Fort Pierce Injures 8 People, One in Critical Condition

A Martin Luther King Jr. Day event at a Florida park descended into chaos on Monday evening after a mass shooting left eight people injured, one critically.

The shooting happened at the Fort Pierce venue where more than 1,000 people had gathered for the memorial day activities. All the victims have been rushed to hospitals and one is in critical condition, sheriff's office chief deputy Brian Hester said.

Mass shooting at MLK event in Florida
Mass shooting at MLK event in Florida video grab

Shooting at MLK Car Show

"As the shots rang out, people were just running in all directions .. .There were people laying behind cars, laying behind anything they could lay behind. It was kind of hard to tell who was a victim and who was just hiding at that point," Hester said, according to CNN.

The shooting erupted around 5:20 p.m. even as the MLK Car Show and Family Fun Day was progressing at Ilous Ellis Park.

The motive behind the shooting is not known yet. Police said they believe there might have been multiple shooters involved.

The investigation is progressing and police have collected various leads from the witnesses. It appears that the shooting erupted following some sort of disagreement and argument between members of the crowd.

"So many innocent people that were injured or hurt were not part of the disagreement ... It's really unfortunate and it's sad that during a celebration of someone who represented peace and equality, a disagreement results in a use of guns and violence," Hester said.

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