One person was killed and at least 10 people were injured Wednesday when gun shots were fired at the conclusion of the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade and celebration.
Stacey Graves, police chief of the Kansas City (Mo.) Police Department, said that 10 to 15 people were shot, when she took questions at a press conference.
Graves said an investigation into the motive of the shooting was underway.
“Officers took two people into custody and immediately rendered life-saving aide to those victims,” Graves said. “We know one of the victims were deceased.”
The reported shooting occurred near a parking garage west of Union Station, where a large crowd had gathered as players and team personnel took the stage to celebrate with fans mostly clad in Chiefs red.
Videos posted to X, formerly Twitter, show Chiefs fans running away from Union Station after the ceremony had ended.
“Anyone nearby needs to leave the area as quickly and safely as possible to facilitate treatment of the shooting victims,” the KC police department posted to X. “Please avoid the Union Station parking garage area to allow first responders through.”
Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas said he was very upset over the shooting.
“This is absolutely a tragedy, the likes that we never would have expected in Kansas City,” Lucas said.
Lucas said the Chiefs players, coaches and staff all made it safely out of the area.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes took to social media to say “Praying for Kansas City…”
Graves expressed her anger on multiple occasions during the press conference.
“I’m angry at what happened today,” Graves said. “The people who came to this celebration should expect a safe environment.”
The Chiefs were celebrating their 25-22 Super Bowl LVIII victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday at Las Vegas. It was the team’s second consecutive championship and third in five seasons. The Chiefs have appeared in four of the past five Super Bowls.
Earlier Wednesday, the mood was celebratory as the Chiefs interacted with fans while celebrating winning the Lombardi Trophy once again.
The players were on double-decker buses as fans lined streets, some climbing up trees to get a better view.
“How about this sea of red, let’s hear you, baby,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid told the large crowd gathered at Union Station. “I’m so proud of this team behind me — through all the highs and lows, they kept persevering, and now we’re holding this trophy.”
Mahomes told the crowd the Chiefs are intent on becoming the first team to win three straight Super Bowl titles.
“Kansas City, let me hear you one time,” Mahomes said. “Man, what a year. To battle through the adversity, to continue to go. To go for that championship. They all doubted us. I don’t want to hear any different. But you know who came through and that’s the Kansas City Chiefs.”
Tight end Travis Kelce had been seen drinking alcoholic beverages throughout the parade. Once on stage, he requested the crowd to sing “Friends in Low Places,” a popular song by country music legend Garth Brooks.
Star defensive end Chris Jones, who had a very adversarial holdout with the team prior to the season, again professed he wants to be part of the three-peat bid.
“I got on this stage last year and I said: ‘run it back, run it back,’ ” Jones said. “But you know what? I want that three-peat. And for those who want Chris Jones gone, I ain’t going nowhere, baby. I’m going to be here this year, and the year after that. I need that three-peat.”
But later in the day, all that joy had been washed away due to a death and a double-digit number of injuries to gun violence.
“Please join me in prayer for all the victims in this heinous act,” linebacker Drue Tranquill said on social media. “Pray that doctors & first responders would have steady hands & that all would experience full healing.”