Two teenagers were fatally gunned down and over a dozen more people were hurt early Monday in a mass shooting outside a Florida nightclub hosting a swimsuit party, police said.
At least one gunman opened fire outside Club Blu in Fort Myers during a “swimsuit glow party” event geared toward youngsters that culminated with seventeen people injured, police said.
Police have not yet released a motive for the 12:30 a.m. attack, but said in a statement it was not a terrorist act.
“Investigators are working very hard to determine a motive,” police said. “The Fort Myers Police Department would like to confirm that this incident is not an act of terror (as it has been referred) or terrorism.”
Cops responded to the scene and found several victims with gunshot wounds lying in the parking lot. Some of the victims were in serious condition while others sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Most of the victims, ranging in age from 12 to 27, were rushed to Lee Memorial Hospital, where one died and another was listed in critical condition. Other victims were either admitted to the hospital or released after treatment. Another victim received treatment at Cape Coral Hospital and was later released.
“Upon arrival, officers located several victims suffering from gunshot wounds,” the Fort Myers Police Department said in a statement. “Injuries ranged from minor to life threatening.
Police identified the slain clubgoers as Stef’An Strawder, 18, and Sean Achilles, 14.
Strawder, a Lehigh Senior High School basketball star with aspirations of playing college hoops, heroically pushed his cousin out of harms as they exited the club at the moment gunfire erupted, his mother, Stephanie White, told News-Press.com.
Strawder’s sister, Sharrelle, 19, was also present at the club and sustained a gunshot wound to the leg, according to their mother.
“Why him? Why Stef?” White said. “No matter where he went, everyone invited him into their home like he was their own. People loved him.”
Achilles was hanging out on a street corner near the crime scene when he was struck by a bullet.
“My cousin called and said Sean is dead,” relative Adline Azemard told News-Press.com. “We were at Lee Memorial all night, and they don’t tell us nothing. They have a party for the kids.”
Florida Governor Rick Scott said Monday that he would travel to Fort Myers later in the day to assess the situation.
“While we are still learning the details about what happened this morning, we know that some of the victims of this terrible incident were children,” Scott said. “We will continue to pray for the victims and their families.”
Three suspects have been taken into custody, Capt. Jim Mulligan of the Fort Myers Police Department told WINK-TV, adding that there were two other active crime scenes–one, on Parkway Street, where a gunman shot at area homes and cars, and another where at least one person of interest was detained.
Parents were picking up their children as the “no ID required” soiree was winding down, NBC reported.
Witnesses described a chaotic scene, with a stampede out of the southwestern Florida club after a man outside yelled, and then opened fire.
Tatianna Nouhaioi told ABC News that said she cradled one of the young victims in her lap.
“It was a young teen event. There were kids. The kid I was holding in my lap, he was 14 years old that got shot,” she told the network. “And then there was a little girl who also got shot and she was 13. One of the security guard’s daughter got shot, so I mean there was kids 13, 14, 15, 16. It was a young kids event.
Victim Timothy Settles posted a Facebook live video of himself from the hospital, writing, “I don’t wanna die.”
Another witness told Fox 4 that her daughter ran from a gunman as he blasted away at her and her friend.
“She could have been shot. She was dodging bullets and running and dropping between cars,” Syreeta Gary told the station. “It’s ridiculous that these kids have to go through this. They can’t enjoy themselves because of other people who have criminalistic minds.”
She said her daughter escaped, but her friend wasn’t so fortunate.
“She got shot in the leg when they were running for safety.
“It’s sad that they have to run for cover.”
In a statement posted to its Facebook page, Club Blu said it did everything it could to make the event a safe one.
“We are deeply sorry for all involved. We tried to give the teens WHAT WE THOUGHT WAS A SAFE PLACE TO HAVE A GOOD TIME. Ages 12-17. There was armed security as well as full security,inside and out. As the club was closing and parents were picking their children up…..that’s when all this took place,” the club said.
“There was nothing more we could of done az you see it was not kids at the party that did this despicable act.”
The shooting comes more than a month after Omar Mateen killed 49 people at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history.