#North Carolina block party shooting leaves 2 dead, 7 injured

At least two people were killed and seven others wounded in a shooting that erupted during a block party in Charlotte, North Carolina, early Monday — and five others were struck by cars as they tried to flee from the gunfire, according to reports.

Police responded to a call of a pedestrian struck by a vehicle shortly after midnight on Beatties Foard Road and Lasalle Street, where hundreds had gathered for the impromptu party, WBTV reported.

As soon as the cops arrived, bullets began flying. Nine people were shot and two of them have died, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Deputy Chief Johnny Jennings told reporters, adding that there was evidence of multiple shooters.

Five or six of the dozen people rushed to local hospitals have life-threatening injuries, officials said.

No arrests have been made and a motive for the bloodshed was not immediately available.

Witnesses said people had gathered to celebrate Juneteenth along Beatties Ford Road all weekend during peaceful celebrations, WBTV reported.

Some people told the news outlet that they saw drivers speeding and performing risky maneuvers in the street, but police have not confirmed any connection to street racing.

WBTV reporter Anne Marie Hagerty tweeted that the family of a victim told her “they are devastated to lose a loved daughter/niece, right after Father’s Day, in this senseless violence.”

She added: “They say they just buried a sister in January and this is too much.”

Just an hour earlier, Charlotte police said they found a man who’d been shot and killed in a common area in an apartment complex on Varsity Lane.

Authorities haven’t released any details about the victim, any suspects or a motive in the homicide.

On Saturday night, at least nine people were wounded when gunfire erupted at an outdoor party in Syracuse, including a 17-year-old boy who was left in critical condition after he was shot in the head.