By Minyvonne Burke -
NBC News
Nine adolescents and children, including a 5-year-old, were injured in a shooting at a gas station in Columbus, Georgia, the Police Department reported this Saturday in a post on the social network Facebook.
Officers were called to the Shell gas station on Warm Springs Road shortly after 10 p.m. on a report of gunshots and "found several gunshot victims and a large group of people," according to their statement.
Among the injured were boys ages 5, 12, 13, 14, 17, and two 15-year-olds. Two girls, aged 13, were also injured, according to police.
All the victims have
non-life threatening injuries
and are being treated in hospitals.
The police have not made arrests and asked for citizen collaboration.
Shell gas station in Columbus, Georgia.Google Maps
[Those involved in the El Paso shooting are young Latinos]
Columbus Police Chief Freddie Blackmon said there is a "surge of gun violence involving our youth" across the country, and the only way to combat it is with a "community effort."
["I had to see blood all over the room": a teacher recounts the drama of the shooting in Michigan]
“Columbus is not immune to these incidents, and I want to assure the citizens that the men and women of the Columbus Police Department are working tirelessly to get violent criminals off our streets,” Blackmon said in a statement.
“The entire town has a responsibility because incidents like this affect us all,” he remarked.
Anyone with information about the case is urged to call 706-225-3162 or submit information anonymously
through the TipSoft website
.
