Georgia officials hunt for suspect in shooting that killed two and injured 35
A homecoming celebration turned into a scene of deadly violence, as dozens of shots were fired into a crowd.
Georgia officials are searching for a suspect after a shooting that left two people dead and 35 injured
Investigators in the US state of Georgia are searching for a suspect in a mass shooting that broke out in the early hours of Sunday, killing two people and injuring 35 others.
About 1,000 people had gathered for a block party in the rural southern community of Vienna when, officials said, more than 50 shots were fired.
Two victims were declared dead at the scene, while another 25 were taken to several nearby hospitals, some in critical condition.
No arrests are known to have been made, and authorities have not identified a possible motive for the violence. The victims were between 14 and 51 years old.
The incident took place on Sunday morning at about 01:30 local time (05:30 GMT), during a Dooly High School homecoming celebration, although it was not a school-sponsored event.
"Our hearts are with the families grieving the loss of loved ones, those who were injured, and everyone affected by this tragedy," the school said in a statement.
Expecting a large turnout, officers from the Dooly County Sheriff's Office were already stationed at both ends of the crowd when gunfire erupted.
"Some people were reporting fireworks and then someone said somebody been shot," Dooly County Sheriff Craig Peavy told local media.
Peavy said officials then moved through the crowd as people ran in different directions, while authorities headed toward the victims.
Ashley Gee, who was present, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution news outlet that the burst of gunfire sounded "like a machine gun".
Authorities arrived and found several injured people. The two dead victims were discovered several blocks from the shooting scene on Pine Street.
Dooly County Coroner Brett Walls told the BBC's US media partner, CBS News, that the two killed were both men, aged 20 and 23.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigations Medical Examiner's Office said it would carry out an autopsy in each case.
The bureau also said it would join the investigation at the request of the Dooly County Sheriff's Office, describing the work as "active and ongoing".