More than 100 shots were fired in a mass shooting outside the Birmingham restaurant, leaving four dead and 17 injured

Four people are dead and at least 17 others injured after gunmen fired more than 100 shots in a mass shooting in Birmingham late Saturday evening that police believe was a “targeted attack.”

The killers remain at large after the shooting in the Five Points South neighborhood, home to the University of Alabama campus and a number of bars and restaurants. Two men and a woman were found unconscious on the sidewalk and died at the scene, Birmingham police said.

The fourth victim, an adult male, later died at a local hospital. More than 100 shots were fired from at least one automatic weapon, local news agency AL.com reported. There were no arrests as of Sunday evening.

According to police, the shooters drove into the area, got out of their car and fired several shots at a group of people before fleeing the scene. Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond said investigators believe the shooters were paid to kill a target who was among the four dead.

“Someone was willing to pay money to have this person killed,” Thurmond said.

Dozens of people were injured, including four people with life-threatening wounds. All of the injured were standing on the sidewalk or street, police said. The University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital received 11 of the victims, including one of the deceased, hospital spokeswoman Hannah Echols told CNN.

It is still unclear what motivated the violence. Anyone who witnessed the shooting should contact police, Birmingham Police Officer Truman Fitzgerald said. There is a $5,000 reward for any tip leading to an arrest.

“There is no greater resource than the public,” Fitzgerald said.

“If you were out here, if you saw anything, if you heard anything, please reach out to us.”

Witness Dajon Singleton told local news outlet WVTM-13 the scene was “very scary.”

“I went up just as it was ending because everyone was screaming and some were crying,” Singleton said.

“The grieving guy is screaming like I know someone is hurt or has died,” he added. “This guy. I knew immediately that someone had lost something.”

Police have asked local businesses for their security footage. The FBI and ATF are both assisting in the investigation.

“Rest assured, we will do everything we can to ensure we expose, identify and hunt down whoever was ever responsible for the exploitation of our people,” Fitzgerald said.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been more than 400 mass shootings in the United States this year.

“These mass shootings have more to do with culture than crime,” Fitzgerald said. “We see that far too many disputes are decided by bullets.”

The Independent has contacted the Birmingham Police Department for more information.

This article was amended on September 23, 2024. It was originally said that one of the deceased was named Hannah Echols, but Echols is the hospital spokesperson and not one of the shooting victims.