COLUMBIA, Mo. — Four people were injured and one of two suspected gunmen was killed early Sunday outside a Missouri nightclub, authorities said.
Authorities in Columbia described the incident outside of Vibez lounge in downtown Columbia as a “mass shooting,” KOMU reported.
Columbia Police Chief Geoff Jones said at a Sunday news conference that offices were patrolling in the area of the nightclub at around 3 a..m CST when they heard gunshots and saw two people “engaging in gunfire.”
UPDATE: One gunman is dead and five people are injured after mass casualty shooting in downtown Columbia early Sunday morning. The second gunman has not been relocated. https://t.co/vZ0mvdK8Z3
— KOMU 8 News (@KOMUnews) November 14, 2021
The first gunman, a 30-year-old male, was shooting toward a crowd of people and was pursued by police, who fatally shot him, KOMU reported.
Jones said the second gunman has not been located.
The five people injured by gunfire were given emergency care at the scene, the television station reported. One person was hospitalized and had emergency surgery; all five victims were in stable condition, according to KMIZ.
“It concerns me deeply to speak of a mass casualty incident in Columbia, Missouri,” Jones told reporters. “This isn’t a police-only issue. It’s a community issue that’s going to take responsible business owners, responsible community partners.
“Part of this is people have gone to guns instead of fighting. When I was young, people used to fight. Now they pull guns on each other. I think it’s an act of cowardice. Honestly, it infuriates me that people have to pull guns on each other to solve an issue.”
©2021 Cox Media Group
