Panic erupted in the heart of New York City last night as a sudden shooting in Times Square left three victims injured and sent tourists scrambling for cover.
Emergency crews descended on the world-famous location just after midnight following reports of multiple gunshots near 42nd Street. Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos as crowds fled in all directions.
Eyewitness Accounts
"We heard what sounded like firecrackers at first," said one shaken bystander. "Then people started screaming and running. It was absolute pandemonium."
Police Response
NYPD officers cordoned off a large section of the square as paramedics treated the wounded at the scene. All three victims were transported to nearby hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.
Authorities have not yet released details about potential suspects or motives behind the shooting. Detectives are reviewing surveillance footage from the area's numerous cameras.
Tourist Hotspot Disrupted
The incident occurred in one of the most heavily policed and monitored areas of Manhattan, raising fresh concerns about public safety in the city's busiest tourist destination.
Times Square attracts an estimated 50 million visitors annually and is typically patrolled by both uniformed and plainclothes officers.
This latest shooting comes amid ongoing debates about gun violence in major US cities, with New York experiencing a complex crime landscape post-pandemic.
