Reports of shots on Parkway unfounded
Rumors of a shooting after the fireworks turned out to be false.
Reports of shots on Parkway unfounded
Flash mob paranoia may have gotten the best of some attendees at the fireworks on the Ben Franklin Parkway late last night. Twitter was abuzz with rumors of shots being fired and an ensuing stampede just after the fireworks ended, but that turned out to be false and police officers suggested that people could have reacted to firecrackers.
Other chatter online suggested that mobs of unruly teenagers had flooded Love Park, but a reporter there saw more cops than people. Ditto for a report of a mob south of City Hall. Plenty of people were milling around, but many were waiting for public transit to take them home and police were in control.
Several police officers in Center City said they hadn't heard about any shootings or mobs related to the fireworks. Police had called extra officers into Center City but called them off just after 12:30 a.m.
UPDATE: We've been trying to verify persistent rumors all day and still haven't confirmed any violence. If you were on the parkway last night and saw something, email stumma@phillynews.com.
Comments (41)
Say what you want, but I have video of a huge mob at 15th and Market, taken about 20 minutes after the fireworks ended. There were so many police on horses, on motorcycles, in cars, and on the sidewalks that I couldn't count them, and they were totally outnumbered by the mob. During the time I was videotaping from my 24th-floor windows, the mob began running toward Broad Street, south of City Hall, and it seemed that, 5 minutes later, every police car in the city followed. There was also a helicopter flying around in low circles, with a bright searchlight on, for at least a half hour.There was a lot of screaming, and I definitely heard noises that sounded like gunshots and not fireworks. This went on for about an hour or so, and it wasn't until about 12:30 that the area quieted down. The video I took shows the chaos very well. The camera doesn't lie. I didn't even go out to see the fireworks because I sensed trouble earlier.- LoveParkLady: post the video on YouTube then send the link to the Daily News. otherwise, I call B.S. on your video.— Don Cornelius
- Don,
I have about 10 short videos, as well as still photos. I just uploaded one video to YouTube, entitled "Post-fireworks chaos at 15th and Market, Philly," for you to see. Your apology is accepted. - I've never uploaded a video to YouTube before tonight. I used my Droid to take the video and selected "Share" and then "YouTube." I titled it and hit the send button, but I don't see the video on YouTube. If you have a suggestion as to how to re-send it or how to see it if it is already posted on there, please let me know. Then I will send it, and any others that they might want to see, to the Daily News. Thank you.
Comment removed.- It's sideways. All the cars to the right are police cars coming around City Hall, and the bright lights at the top are rows of police on motorcycles, coming down 15th Street. The video looks very clear on my phone, but it was taken through a window, and I don't know why it is sort of grainy on YouTube. I have 4 still photos and 13 videos, taken from when the crowd began to get really large to when the street began to clear an hour later.
- I saw about a hundred (maybe more) racing up the Parkway near the end of the fireworks. I saw a few people get run over by these idiots. LoveParkLady you're probably right. Post the video on youtube. These losers try to ruin everything for everyone else.— MikeOct20
- People are so stupid.— jjs0101
- My little brother and I were at Logan Square watching the fireworks and about halfway through the fireworks a whole lot of people just started sprinting east down the parkway. Everyone looked extremely scared. We took a right at the four seasons hotel. I'd say it was a stampede because everyone took off at the exact same time and ran in the same direction. I had no idea what was going on but we followed the crowd. I'd like to know what happened.— pat2452
- There was gunshots and screaming, I grabbed my son with others and ran up the block, very chaotic , definately felt unsafe.— jacljane
- I work at The Four Seasons and walked outside around 11 30 to see the fireworks. There was a stampede of people running down cherry street screaming that shots where fired. I watched the crowd gather throughout the day and have never seen that many people disperse so quickly. May be the cattle affect.. I person says gunfire and everyone runs IDK but there was definitly rumor of shots fired.— Redz127
- I have still photographs of people actually being thrown onto the ground at 15th & Market. It happened right next to me. Being pushed, falling down, laying on the pavement. Large groups of people running, trying to fight other groups. Police using their horses to practically run over people to get them to leave the area. I know this for sure because all of a sudden I was being shoved by people and it was from the horse pushing them. I turned around to see giant horse teeth 2 feet from my face. And I know the difference between a gun shot and a firecracker. Gun shots happen in philly every day. Firecrackers, a couple times a year. There were gunshots at a couple different locations.— CCphotog
- I was afraid for my own safety last night. As I was waiting for fireworks to begin, something started brewing. A few guys started fighting right in front of us, then a mob of people started running down the street. There were no police anywhere where we were sitting, and I wanted to get my 9-year-old daughter out of there. As we were walking, there was another mob of people running through the street. Again, I did not see any visible police anywhere. Parents with terrified children were hiding in store alcoves. I saw little kids crying, clinging to their parents because they were scared. I took my daughter to another street, more running mobs. It was terrible and very frightening - and there were no police on any of the side streets to help the pedestrians. The entire way to the PATCO stop, I didn't see a single officer making sure the visitors to town were safe. So, not only did we miss the fireworks, my kid doesn't want to go back to Philly again.— Philly no more
- We's goin down to see da free fireworks. NAAA we's don't pays taxes. Afta, we's gonna mob out cause we's don't got work tomorrow. . or da next day. . or da next day. .— Biased Media
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