A Tuesday evening shooting at Seattle’s most notorious homeless camp left two men dead and three people seriously wounded as police searched for those responsible.
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Authorities said no one has been arrested and they are looking for two “persons of interest”.
Police responded to reports of gunfire at the camp, a makeshift tent city known as “The Jungle” on a highway embankment, at about 7:20 p.m. Tuesday.
“They were targeted specifically for who they were”, O’Toole said, adding that there is no reason to believe there is an ongoing danger related to the shootings.
“Officers began searching a greenbelt in the area-sometimes colloquially referred to as ‘The Jungle’-and found the five victims”, according to an earlier statement.
Murray recently in November declared a state of emergency over the city’s growing homeless population. Later, when he was told about the shooting, he went to the scene and said The Jungle had been totally out of control for almost twenty years.
One man and a woman are also in serious condition.
Police said an unidentified woman died at the scene and a man died at hospital later.
KIRO-TV reported the victim’s ages were between 25 and 45 but their names have not been revealed.
The Seattle Department of Transportation says all lanes of Airport Way South are closed to traffic in the area.
“I can’t help but wonder, did I act too late?”
The shooting happened at around the same time Seattle Mayor Ed Murray finished delivering a special address on homelessness at Mary’s Place Family Center, about two miles north of the encampment.
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Tuesday’s violence came the same night that Murray gave a speech explaining his response to homelessness crisis, which has caused him to declare a state of emergency. We have tried to do the best we can given the circumstances we have, but obviously I’m going to question, was I good enough at my job?
