Multiple law enforcement sources told NBC that a man dressed in clothing similar to what subway workers wear threw some type of device and opened fire on the crowd.
At least 16 people were shot by the assailant, who was robust and, according to some testimonies, African-American. He was wearing a gas mask and an orange construction vest. He fled the scene and has not been captured.
Some of the injured boarded another train to flee to the next station, the sources said.
The NYPD warned New Yorkers to avoid the area.
Photos posted on social media showed bloodied people on subway platforms, and footage from the Citizen app showed a heavy police presence at the scene.
Initially there were reports of several unexploded devices at the station, but after searching the area police confirmed that no explosives were found.
“At 08:27 (12:27 GMT) the police responded to a 911 call from an injured person on the subway” in Brooklyn, a New York police spokeswoman told AFP.
The fire department gave a figure of “13 injured so far” while ABC News quoted police sources as saying that at least five people were shot in the incident at the 36th Street station.
“There were no active explosive devices at the time,” the NYPD tweeted.
“Please clear the area,” the NYPD said, urging witnesses to contact police for details.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she had been “informed” of the situation.
“First responders are on site” and information will be updated as it is investigated, he tweeted.
ABC News reported that officers are investigating whether a smoke device was detonated and that police are searching for the suspect.
According to the NBC network, which cited police officers and another security service, a man wearing a gas mask and an orange work vest may have thrown a can of smoke onto the subway platform to distract people on the way. rush hour.
The man was still at large, according to Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine.
The White House said that President Joe Biden had been informed of the incident and was in communication with New York authorities.
Mass shootings occur relatively frequently in the United States, where firearms cause an estimated 40,000 deaths a year, including suicides, according to the Gun Violence Archive website.
The incident came a day after Biden announced new gun control measures, especially increasing restrictions on so-called “ghost weapons,” which are difficult to trace because they can even be assembled at home.
Lax gun laws and constitutionally guaranteed rights to bear repeatedly hamper efforts to reduce the number of guns in circulation despite a majority of Americans who say they favor greater controls.
Three-quarters of homicides in the United States are committed with weapons and the number of revolvers and other types of weapons continues to rise
Source: Ambito
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