Summary<\/p>\n
Eight people were shot near a festival in Toledo, Ohio, the mayor said, and authorities are searching for suspects
\n Witnesses described scenes of panic as festivalgoers heard gunshots and saw people falling to the ground.
\n A witness said he saw at least five people with gunshot wounds.<\/p>\n
\n AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.<\/p>\n
\n Police are searching for suspects after eight people were shot near the Old West End Festival in Toledo, Ohio, authorities said Saturday.\n <\/p>\n
\n Officers responded to the scene around 5:30 p.m. local time, the Toledo Police Department said.\n <\/p>\n
\n It is believed eight people were shot and they are all expected to survive, Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz told CNN affiliate WTOL<\/a>. Toledo police said earlier \u201cmany victims\u201d had been transported to nearby hospitals for treatment.\n <\/p>\n \n Police are asking people to avoid the area as they conduct their investigation. A significant presence of officers remains at the scene.\n <\/p>\n \n Kevin Berry said he was sitting in the neighborhood arboretum listening to live music with friends when he heard a handful of gunshots ring out, he told The Associated Press.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cEverybody hit the deck,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n \n When he looked back up, he saw a gun being tossed to the ground less than 50 feet away from him and officers who were already at the festival rushed to the scene, the AP reported.\n <\/p>\n \n Berry, who said he has medical training and served in the US Navy, told the AP he saw at least five people with gunshot wounds.\n <\/p>\n \n The shooting at the Old West End Festival turned a community celebration into another episode in a distinctly American pattern of public violence, where festivals, dinners<\/a> and graduation ceremonies<\/a> have given way to gunfire.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cSummer festivals should be safe spaces for families to spend time together without fear of violence,\u201d Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said on X. \u201cWe are confident that law enforcement will locate the suspects involved in this senseless crime.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The neighborhood\u2019s historic streets, now a crime scene, are scattered with abandoned sneakers, plastic cups and toppled coolers abandoned in the chaos. The belongings are those of people who went out to share a drink and good music with friends before they were forced to run for cover.\n <\/p>\n \n The shooting is one of at least 170 mass shootings in the US this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive<\/a>, which defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more victims are shot.\n <\/p>\n