'Horrific violence': 3 dead, 4 injured in Seattle food festival shooting, officials say

 

Three people were killed and four others were injured after shots rang out at the Bite of Seattle food festival at the Seattle Center on Sunday, according to officials.

The Seattle Fire Department said first responders were dispatched to the scene at about 6 p.m.

When officers arrived, two people were shooting at each other, according to the Seattle Police Department.

"Our officers were there within seconds. They performed emergency aid to the wounded until the Seattle Fire Department was on scene," Acting Chief Tyrone Davis, of the Seattle police, said in a statement. "Simultaneously, officers launched a search for the people responsible for this senseless violence."

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson said a suspect has been taken into custody. Further details on the suspect have not been released. The other person alleged to be firing shots was still unaccounted for, the police said.

First responders attempted lifesaving efforts at the scene for two of the seven people who were shot, but those efforts were unsuccessful, according to fire officials. Both were declared deceased at the scene, officials said.

Another person later died after being transferred to a local hospital, officials said during a press conference. Officials at the University of Washington Medicine's Harborview Medical Center earlier said that one woman was in surgery and was in critical condition.

The Seattle Police Department said in an update early on Monday that two men, aged 19 and 44, along with woman, 56, were killed.

The other patients -- a boy, a 23-year-old man and a 39-year-old woman -- are in stable condition, according to the hospital. A 40-year-old woman with minor injuries from the scene declined transport to the hospital, according to fire officials.

The shooting occurred during Bite of Seattle, an annual festival with food vendors and live music held at the Seattle Center.

"What happened at the Seattle Center today was an act of horrific violence," Wilson, the mayor, said in a statement. "Impacted families are living through the worst moment of their lives, and an entire community is trying to understand how a gathering built around culture, connection, and joy ended in gunfire."

"No one should have to weigh the risk of being shot before attending an event, gathering with friends, or experiencing their city," Wilson said.  

Two guns were recovered at the scene, officials said. There were no surveillance cameras in the immediate area of the shooting, law enforcement said. Police are asking the public to come forward with information.

Detectives from the police's Homicide and Gun Violence Reduction units were investigating the shooting, the department said.

Multiple agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Seattle field office responded to the incident, an agency spokesperson told ABC News.