On Friday night and into Saturday, multiple people were injured in downtown Nashville by apparent stray gunfire, possibly linked to celebratory shooting during the city’s massive Fourth of July festivities.
Police say three people suffered non-critical gunshot wounds around the time the fireworks display ended. A 60-year-old man was treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center for a foot injury but couldn’t recall exactly where he had been standing when it happened. A 58-year-old woman, who had been waiting for a shuttle near 7th Avenue and Broadway, felt pain in her breast and was also taken to Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, a 26-year-old woman was struck in the face while getting into a rideshare at 1st Avenue and Demonbreun Street, resulting in a swollen lip and a mark on her nose.
Separately, a 30-year-old woman who went to St. Thomas Midtown Hospital after feeling a burning sensation in her leg discovered she had been struck by a small-caliber bullet. She had been standing with friends at Rep. John Lewis Way and Demonbreun Street after the fireworks show and initially thought debris from a passing car had hit her.
Another case involved a 33-year-old man who showed up at the Century Farms Emergency Department with a gunshot wound to his leg. He and a friend had stopped on Bell Road to watch fireworks when he heard what sounded like a gunshot and then felt pain.
All of the victims were part of the estimated 365,000 people who came out for Nashville’s Let Freedom Sing celebration.
Metro Police are reminding the public of the dangers of celebratory gunfire, warning that bullets fired into the air can come down unpredictably and cause serious harm in crowded areas.
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