Several people shot dead in East St. Louis as authorities respond to “rapidly evolving” situation



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Several people were hit by gunfire Thursday night in Illinois with police and SWAT agents surrounding a house as a manhunt for suspects is underway, authorities and local reports say .

Illinois State Police told Fox News shots were fired around 4 p.m. in the area of ​​Martin Luther King Drive and North 6th Street in East St. Louis, on the other side. of the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Mo.

“Shots were fired and several victims (were) beaten,” a police spokesperson told Fox News without giving details.

Witnesses told Fox 2 St. Louis that they saw a shooting near a meat packing company where several shots were fired and three people were shot. Authorities have not confirmed the number of people injured or their injuries.

KSDK-TV reported that the St. Clair County Emergency Management Office reported that 12 people may have been shot. The agency would not confirm this with Fox News.

Police and SWAT officers surrounded a house near where the shooting took place as the search for suspects continues, the outlet said.

Fox News has contacted the East St. Louis Police Department.

Authorities told KMOV-TV that three suspects shot dead several people as they passed a MetroLink train as it approached a level crossing. The vehicle with the suspects inside was hit.

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The train was seen stopped on the tracks as investigators scanned the scene.

According to Security.org, which analyzed FBI crime data in 2019, East St. Louis ranked first in the highest per capita murders for U.S. cities over 10,000.

The city also ranked fourth for violent crime.

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