On the night of Friday, July 9, two teenage boys were shot and injured by a car driving outside Knott's Berry Farm. A large number of people fled the amusement park. Some fell and sprained their ankles when the park was evacuated and panic spread. Hiding with strangers in the bathroom, storage area and refrigerator.
The Buena Park police sergeant said that at about 8:27 p.m., the dispatcher received many reports of shooting near the main entrance of the theme park. Mario Escamilla said. On the beach boulevard south of La Palma, a car fired multiple bullets. That's outside Knott's northeast featuring Camp Snoopy.
Escamilla said one boy was treated by the Orange County Fire Department before being taken to the hospital, and another boy later appeared there. They did not appear to be seriously injured immediately. Their age and other details were not disclosed.
Escamilla said Saturday that there was no description of the shooter or the vehicle. Whether there was a conflict before the shooting is still under investigation.
An Instagram post showed a teenage boy wearing a dark jacket, dark pants, and bi-fold white shoes, showing that there appeared to be a bullet hole in his jacket through which blood leaked. He said in the video that he was shot in the leg. Escamilla said that the video "seems" to be a victim of the shooting, but detectives have not confirmed this.
Knott's is open on Saturdays. On Saturday, I called the media relations department several times and received a busy tone.
Park visitors’ descriptions of the shooting and the panic that followed were chilling.
Zachery Lewis told Adrian Pineda, the cameraman of OC Hawk, that Zachery Lewis and his family were in the park when "people suddenly started to run away from the bumper cars." "I looked around first, thinking it was a fire, because I smelled burnt. But then I heard:'Gun! Gun! Gun!'"
Lewis said he saw people being knocked down and falling down immediately after the shooting. He said that he tried to help some people stand up. In the process, his shoulder was dislocated and his arm was raised high and supported by a friend. He separated from the people he was with, and finally hid in the bathroom with the stranger.
Police said some people sprained their ankles while fleeing the scene of the shooting.
"Everyone started to panic and the children got lost because we didn't know what happened," Melody Padilla in the park told ABC7.
Mark Ahrens took refuge in the park and posted a photo on Twitter showing him and a boy in a small room waiting for the situation with others. Their faces reflect the uncertainty of the moment.
"An audio technician named Rod allowed a group of us to hide in the technical storage area behind his little band stage. Some of us prayed. Then we were taken backstage," Aarens wrote.
An audio technician named Rod allowed a group of us to hide in the technical storage area behind his little band stage. Some of us pray. Then we were taken to the background. Pray for any victims and anyone who has been traumatized. pic.twitter.com/wlf871CvYb
— Mark Allens (@MarkLovesMau) July 10, 2021
Aarens also released a video taken by his wife, which showed other people curled up in a room.
Here, we maintain inner peace. My son and I pray. We were escorted in the background and arrived here about 10 minutes before leaving the park near the Ghost Rider. https://t.co/Koeiv2my6e
— Mark Allens (@MarkLovesMau) July 10, 2021
Parents whose children are not in the park are scared.
A mother named Heather wrote on Twitter: "There is nothing worse than my teenager calling me whispering,'Mom has a gunman, what should I do?' I have 4 Teenagers, I hope they will not be traumatized by today’s events. Complete chaos."
One of Mykey Irvin’s children also contacted her. She wrote on Twitter: “My daughter is 20 feet away from the shooting. I randomly received a text message that I love you, as if this would be her last message. 🙁"
Knott made a statement on Twitter.
"We have learned of the incident outside the Knott Berry Farm. A victim was assisted by park staff outside the gate of the park and was taken to a local hospital. Currently, the incident is under investigation. All inquiries should be directed to Buena Park police or local authorities proposed."
Knotts said those who lost their items can retrieve them on Saturday.
A woman praised some of Knott's employees. "I want to pay tribute to your staff at Grizzlies. They are young too, but they took the initiative to come forward and guide many of us into the kitchen and refrigerator, while keeping us as calm and safe as possible," Jessica MH wrote road.
Buena Park Sheriff Escamilla (Escamilla) said that there are always large numbers of police in the park and the area. Officials were assigned to Knott's and the adjacent Soak City water park. In addition, Knott hired additional officials for the venue. Escamilla said there are also street police patrolling the area.
Escamilla said the officer arrived at the shooting site "within a few minutes."
He said on Saturday afternoon that there was no new news about the circumstances of the shooting.
The police asked anyone with knowledge of the matter to call 714-562-3901.
Get the latest news every day!
We invite you to use our comment platform for insightful conversations on issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right to delete any illegal, threatening, abusive, defamatory, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent, or other information or material that is offensive to us at any time, and to disclose that meets the law , Regulations, or any information required by the government. We may permanently block any users who abuse these conditions.
If you see an offensive comment, hover your mouse over the right side of the post and pull down the arrow that appears to use the "Mark as inappropriate" feature. Or, contact our editor by sending an email to moderator@scng.com.