N.C. mall reopens following report of gunfire
People rush from one of the exits of Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, N.C. Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. Reports of gunshots inside the busy North Carolina mall caused chaos Saturday afternoon as shoppers ran screaming for the doors or sheltered in stores while dozens of officers arrived on the scene, witnesses said. (Harry Lynch/The News & Observer via AP)
In this image made from a video provided by Lauren Baker, people rush to one of the exits of Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, N.C. Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. Reports of gunshots inside the busy North Carolina mall caused chaos Saturday afternoon as shoppers ran screaming for the doors or sheltered in stores while dozens of officers arrived on the scene, witnesses said. (Lauren Baker via AP)
In this image made from a video provided by Lauren Baker, people rush to one of the exits of Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, N.C. Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. Reports of gunshots inside the busy North Carolina mall caused chaos Saturday afternoon as shoppers ran screaming for the doors or sheltered in stores while dozens of officers arrived on the scene, witnesses said. (Lauren Baker via AP)
In this image made from a video provided by Lauren Baker, people rush to one of the exits of Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, N.C. Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. Reports of gunshots inside the busy North Carolina mall caused chaos Saturday afternoon as shoppers ran screaming for the doors or sheltered in stores while dozens of officers arrived on the scene, witnesses said. (Lauren Baker via AP)
By Emery P. Dalesio (Associated Press)
RALEIGH, N.C. — A busy North Carolina shopping mall reopened for business Sunday as police continued investigating reports of gunfire that sent shoppers running in fear or left them hiding inside stores a day earlier.
Police said they haven’t confirmed what really happened but say there were no reports of people being wounded or of shell casings found inside the Crabtree Valley Mall.
Pandemonium erupted Saturday afternoon and after several shoppers said they heard what sounded like gunfire.
While some people reported seeing a gun, “no one has reported that we had a gun fired, so we are looking at all possibilities,” Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown told reporters.
Video posted on social media sites shows dozens of people running toward mall exit doors as numerous screams were heard. Outside the mall, where people gathered afterward, a police officer got on the loudspeaker of a fire truck and said there was no one shot in the mall. Witnesses described chaos after reports of shots.
Eight people ranging in age from 10 to 70 were transported to hospitals for treatment of injuries suffered as they rushed to leave the mall, the police chief said. None of those injuries appeared to be life-threatening.
The mall reopened at noon on Sunday.
