Three people were shot in the parking lot of Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, prompting a heavy police presence Sunday night.
A 17-year-old boy from Aurora, Illinois, had a thigh wound and a 19-year-old woman from Appleton, Wisconsin, had a leg wound, police said. They were taken to a hospital and their wounds were described as non-life-threatening. A third victim had a shoulder injury and declined to be taken to a hospital.
A Six Flags spokesperson confirmed the shooting, issuing the following statement:
Three people were injured this evening when shots were fired from a single vehicle in the parking lot. The vehicle immediately drove away. Park security personnel and officers from the on-site Gurnee Police Department Substation responded immediately. Emergency services responded, transporting two persons to the hospital for evaluation. A third person declined treatment.
The park closed early with guests and team members departing under direction of the Gurnee Police Department. Law enforcement is investigating.
WGN News spoke with Laurie Walker and her daughter, Grace, who were inside the park when the shooting incident occurred. Walker said they were waiting in line for the ‘Ricochet’ in the southwest area of the park around 7:50 p.m. when she noticed people running in a panic.
“There is an active shooter, get down, get down,” Walker recalled someone shouting. “We didn’t know what was going on, so we got down.”
For more on this story, please consider these sources:
- Six Flags amusement park shooting near Chicago leaves 3 hurt ABC News
- Three injured in shooting at Six Flags Great America in Illinois CNN
- Three people injured in shooting outside Six Flags theme park in Illinois Reuters
- 3 people injured in shooting outside Six Flags theme park in Illinois NBC News
- Shooting in Parking Lot of Six Flags Great America Injures 3, Sends Panicked Guests Running NBC Chicago