This is the dramatic moment bystanders rushed to help eight bloody high school students who were shot at a Philadelphia bus stop on Wednesday.
The students, from Northeast High School, were shot after gunmen opened fire at a SEPTA bus stop as the teens waited for a ride home from school.
Shots rang out around 3pm at Rising Sun and Cottman avenues in Northeast Philly.
Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said the students, between the ages of 15 and 17 were shot after three gunmen exited a vehicle near a Dunkin Donuts location and fired more than 30 shots.
‘At some point when the bus is pulling up and the kids are converging to get on the bus, three individuals exit that vehicle and then discharges multiple times,’ Bethel said.
Dramatic bystander video captured the bloody aftermath as school kids are seen on the ground after three gunman opened fire on Wednesday at a Philadelphia SEPTA bus stop
The suspects are seen drawing their weapons and shooting at innocent people as the bus pulled up to the stop at Rising Sun and Cottman avenues in Northeast Philly
Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said the students, between the ages of 15 and 17 were shot after three gunmen exited a vehicle near a Dunkin Donuts location and fired more than 30 shots
The surveillance footage starts as a dark blue Hyundai Elantra pulls into a Dunkin Donuts parking lot.
Moments later, three suspects dressed in all black, wearing face masks, charge out of the car as the driver quickly reverses the vehicle with the doors still open.
The video then turns to another angle and shows the moment the gunmen draw their weapons and shoot as the bus pulls up.
The unidentified suspects then run back to the car that meets them near the bus and swiftly flees the scene.
The video, posted by the Philadelphia Police Department, then shows an individual shots of each suspect with details to describe them.
Towards the end, a separate video which was taken by a bystander that was near the stop during the violent encounter, shows the bloody and horrific aftermath.
Two to three school kids are seen on the wet ground as people around them panic and try to help.
One male student, seen in khaki pants and a black zipper hoodie is seen wincing on the ground as he hold his bloody leg.
The video then moves back to two other victims, as one of them has blood pooling on the ground from their back.
One victim is reported to be in critical condition and the others’ conditions are unclear at this time. SEPTA said there were no injuries reported to employees or bus passengers.
A motive for the shooting has not been released.
Police said that they have located the car that was involved in the shooting and that the paper license plates that were originally attached the vehicle have been replaced with temporary plates.
The students from Northeast High School are seen laying on the ground after the unidentified gunmen shot them at the bus station
Surveillances footage also captured the moment the suspect pulled into the nearby parking lot, ran over and shot the innocent people and fled the scene in blue Hyundai Elantra
Philadelphia Mayor, Cherelle Parker, said: ‘Over the past two days we have seen 11 juveniles shot. Over the past few days, we have seen the senseless acts of gun violence occur in and around schools, and public transportation’
The transportation system said a Route 18 bus and a Route 67 bus were struck by gunfire near the scene of the shooting and have advised people to avoid the area as they investigate the incident.
This is the latest in SEPTA bus shootings in the city in the past four days as Charles Lawson, the Chief of SEPTA Transit Police, said his department is going to take an ‘aggressive’ approach in combating the surge in gun violence, and ‘target every criminal code on the books.’
‘We’re going to enforce crime and we’re going to do it aggressively – and we’re not going to apologize for it,’ Lawson said.
On Tuesday night, another shooting took place onboard a Route 79 bus near South Broad Street and Snyder Avenue.
Carmelo Drayton, 37, suffered two gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at Jefferson University Hospital in Center City.
Police said the shooter, who was wearing a black jacket, grey sweatpants and boots, fled the area. No weapons were found at the scene.
On Monday, Dayemen Taylor, 17, was also killed when gunfire rang out near a bus stop near the Ognotz and Godfrey avenues intersection in upper Northern Philly.
Taylor was waiting at the stop after finishing school when at least two people approached him and one opened fire with an automatic weapon, Daily News reported.
Four others were injured in that shooting, including two women who were on a bus and two teenagers, both 15, who were grazed by bullets.
A motive for the shooting has not been released but police said that they have located the car that dropped the shooters off and picked them back up before they fled
On Tuesday night, another shooting took place onboard a Route 79 bus near South Broad Street and Snyder Avenue. Carmelo Drayton, 37, suffered two gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the hospital
On Monday, Dayemen Taylor, 17, was also killed when gunfire rang out near a bus stop near the Ognotz and Godfrey avenues intersection in upper Northern Philly
On Sunday night, a man was shot and killed after he exited a SEPTA bus near Castor Avenue in the Oxford Circle in Northeast Philadelphia.
Officials identified the man as Sawee Kofa, 27, and said that he was shot in the face around 11.25pm.
‘We use every legal means at our disposal to target illegal gun possession on SEPTA,’ Lawson said.
‘We’re going to target individuals concealing their identity. We’re going to target fare evasion. We’re going to target open drug use.’
No arrests have been made in connection to any of the shootings, police said.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said: ‘Over the past two days we have seen 11 juveniles shot. Over the past few days, we have seen the senseless acts of gun violence occur in and around schools, and public transportation.’
‘The purpose of our being here on today is to inform you all that enough is enough.’
‘We are just absolutely heartbroken and angry that innocent children walking home from school would be impacted by gun violence, ‘ Tony Watlington, the Superintendent of the school district of Philadelphia said.
Watlington added that trained professionals will be present at the school on Thursday to provide support for staff and students following the terrifying incident.