Tamir combed through the debris Tuesday afternoon at Lemon Hill.
The night before, he was among the crowd – potentially numbering in the hundreds – who fled a Memorial Day gathering when multiple people opened fire near the historic mansion in East Fairmont Park.
Two people were killed and nine others, including three teenagers, were struck by the gunfire, according to authorities.
“I understand what gunshots sound like,” Tamir, of North Philadelphia, who was not comfortable providing his last name, told Metro. “I realized there wasn’t no fireworks because I didn’t see anything light up in the sky.”
He grabbed his girlfriend’s hand and said it was time to leave. She dropped her purse, and Tamir returned to search amid the empty liquor bottles, footwear, grilling tools and other items scattered throughout the park.
Investigators recovered 21 fired cartridge casings at Lemon Hill from weapons of three different calibers, indicating the probability of at least three shooters, city officials said. At least one of those weapons, police believe, was equipped with a switch allowing the gun to be utilized in the manner of an automatic firearm.
“If you get a chance to listen to the video, that’s the sound of war,” Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said Tuesday morning, referring to cellphone footage shared on social media. “When you have an automatic weapon that can empty a 20-clip magazine in seconds, it is meant to kill, to create carnage and to hit as many people as possible.”
The incident happened just before 10:30 p.m. in an area of that park near Boathouse Row and adjacent to the Fairmount neighborhood. Amya Devlin, 23, and Mikhail Bowers, 21, were shot and died a short time later at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, authorities said.
Nine other victims – six females and three males ranging in age from 15 to 28 – were wounded and hospitalized, police said. Officials said they are all in stable condition.
No one had been arrested as of Tuesday afternoon, and police have not commented on a potential motive. Anyone with information is asked to call or text the PPD tip line at 215-686-TIPS (8477).
Earlier in the day, at around 6 p.m., officers broke up groups of youth who had gathered at nearby Smith Memorial Playground, Bethel said. They had been dispatched to Lemon Hill just after 8 p.m. and were in the process of dispersing the crowd when shots rang out, he added.
He told reporters that police were about 75 to 100 feet away from the shooting and rushed victims to the hospital in their squad cars.
Lemon Hill, long a community gathering spot, has no lights or cameras, Bethel explained. Municipal employees appeared to be setting up portable light poles Tuesday.
Mayor Cherelle Parker described the mass shooting as “a heinous act of violence that was inhumane.”
“We’re not going to be held hostage in our city,” she said. “We’re leading the nation right now in our significant reduction in crime and homicides. We’re not going back to those old stats.”
Homicides and shootings have been trending downward in Philadelphia since a coronavirus-era peak, though gun violence tends to be more severe in the warmer months.
Parker encouraged parents and caregivers to keep track of their teenagers and asked them to pay particular attention to their social media use. Families with questions or concerns can contact the 211 violence prevention hotline.
The PPD is planning to increase deployment within Fairmount Park, beginning this weekend, Bethel added.
Lemon Hill is slated to host a fan festival in conjunction with next year’s FIFA World Cup. More immediately, the annual Roots Picnic is coming up Saturday and Sunday at Fairmount Park’s Mann Center for the Performing Arts.
Bethel said both major events have comprehensive public safety planning and preparation. “It’s different when you have an unprovoked, unscheduled, unplanned event,” he added.
State Sen. Sharif Street, who visited the scene Tuesday, is less concerned about safety at those coordinated festivals.
“It is disturbing to a community where a space that people think of as a safe space, people go and get hurt,” he told Metro. “Regular people gather here on a regular basis, and people shouldn’t have to go through security in order to feel comfortable in their own communities.”
