4 wounded in shooting at Tanforan Mall in San Bruno
SAN BRUNO, Calif. (KTVU) - Four people were injured in a shooting at Tanforan Mall in San Bruno Tuesday afternoon.
Two of the victims are teenage boys and were transported to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, according to hospital spokesperson Brent Andrew.
Both victims are in serious condition after it was initially reported that one was in critical condition.
Andrew said SF General typically handles patients with more critical injuries.
Two other victims sustained minor injuries, but were not transported to a hospital.
Police say it does not appear to be a random shooting and there is a possibility two shooters were involved.
San Bruno Police Department received multiple 911 calls of gunfire at the shopping center located at 1150 El Camino Real. Before conducting a systematic search of the building and surrounding areas, officers found two victims with gunshot wounds.
According to BART police, a weapon involved in the shooting was recovered from a train at the 12th Street Station in Oakland. Trains did not stop at that station for some time and the station was shut down while police investigated.
12th Street station was temporarily closed just before 5 p.m. after the transit agency received a report that the gunman boarded an Oakland bound train.
The station was reopened around 5:26 p.m.
Trains began stopping at San Bruno BART Station again when the station reopened shortly after 8 p.m.
Video obtained by KTVU showed a heavy police presence outside the mall.
KTVU's Amber Lee spoke with soldiers from an Army recruiting office at the mall, who helped provide first aid to the victims. %INLINE%
"It was like, 'pah, pah.' Then it was a pause. Then it was, 'pah, pah, pah, pah, pah,'" said staff Sgt. Isiah Locklear who was working at the recruiting office when the shooting happened. He said he ran towards the commotion and saw a 16-year-old boy who had been shot in the stomach.
"He was laying on the floor, waving his arms. 'I've been shot.' He's like, 'Please. Don't let me die. I don't want to die. That really hit me.' He didn't want to die. I was telling him he wasn't going to die. I was going to stick with [him] through it," Locklear said.
Locklear used his shirt to stop the bleeding. "I consider myself a soldier. A soldier that has to do what he has to do," he said.
Meanwhile, another staff sergeant tended to a 12-year-old boy who had been shot in the leg.
"It didn't feel real," said Barnes & Noble employee Lauren Mason. "I was right by where the little kids play. It was really scary. Everybody was screaming."
The manager of Finish Line, Chris Scott, said his store is located within feet of the food court where the first shots rang out.
Scott said the suspect then went upstairs and fired more shots.
San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa said he was in shock after hearing about the incident.
"Under no circumstance would I have thought that Tanforan would have a shooting within the mall," Canepa said, describing it as a decades-old, family-friendly mall that is relatively safe. "This is truly,
truly a tragedy."
BART officials said the parking structure at the San Bruno BART station will be closed for some time
and people will not be able to get to their vehicles. No estimate exists for when the parking structure will be open again.
"This is a sad day and ... I'm in shock that this would happen," Canepa said. "Two days before the Fourth of July, the last thing that you would expect is a shooting."
Canepa, whose joint powers agency oversees the county Office of Emergency Services, praised law enforcement who responded to the scene of the shooting.
"Any shooting that takes place is unacceptable, but when you have multiple injuries - you have to applaud police," he said.
Bay City News contributed to this report.