Hundreds of people were forced to flee for their lives after a gunman opened fire at the State Fair of Texas – and some fairgoers sat on the roof of a Ferris wheel and watched the terror from above.
A suspect who injured three people Saturday night is in custody, police said. The gunman opened fire on the food court in the Tower Building in Dallas.
Dallas police said her injuries were not life-threatening.
The ordeal erupted when one man started shooting at another – but screaming dozens of carnival-goers fled the fun when they heard the bullets.
Dallas Fire-Rescue EMS loads one of the wounded onto a cart after a shooting at the State Fair of Texas Saturday evening. Police responded to a report of a shooting in the fair’s food court around 7:45 p.m
Clips of the shooting show people crawling, and one person stuck at the top of the Ferris wheel was forced to watch the panic, unable to escape
Hundreds of people were forced to flee for their lives after a gunman opened fire at the Texas State Fair – and some fairgoers sat on the roof of a Ferris wheel and watched the terror from above
Dallas police block the entrance to the State Fair of Texas after a shooting
Clips of the shooting show people crawling, and one person stuck at the top of the Ferris wheel was forced to watch the panic, unable to escape.
The shooter also reportedly attempted to escape by fleeing the scene.
But shortly after 8 p.m., the suspect was in custody and police were able to seize the weapon. The two men involved were known to each other, Dallas police said.
Clara Bishop, 20, who was at the fair at the time, told the Dallas Morning News that she was “close to tears” because she had to duck behind a ride when the shots were fired.
She tried to stop her friends from going on a UFO ride, but the doors were locked, so she decided to hide instead of fleeing.
Johnna McKee, 63, who worked at the nearby dock, immediately began closing and locking the restaurant’s doors. Her family has been selling funnel cakes at the fair since the 1960s.
The view from the Ferris wheel as people started running as shots rang out
Police confirmed the suspect was taken into custody
Dallas police are on guard following a shooting at the State Fair of Texas on Saturday
Fairgoers wait for the DART light rail at the Fair Park Station after a shooting at the State Fair of Texas on Saturday
The trade fair visitors rushed towards the exit before the police called for the area to be evacuated
She said, “There’s a calmness that comes over you.” I had to keep my composure while telling everyone that there was an active shooter and that we were going into lockdown.
“As a little girl, as a seven-year-old, I was never afraid here, I was never unsafe. Even tonight I knew they were prepared.
“In today’s society, you always have to be on high alert.” “You never know, even if you just walk into a Walmart.”
Juan Reaves, 52, who worked at Smokey John’s Bar-B-Que locations at the fair, said three of his employees quit because they no longer felt safe.
He said, “This is so disappointing.” “The fair is one of the best reflections of Dallas.”
Dallas police stand guard following the shooting
Dallas police officers work near the scene of a shooting at the State Fair of Texas
Dallas City Council member Adam Bazaldua wrote after the shooting
“Three people were injured and the shooter is in DPD custody.”
“The park is being evacuated for everyone’s safety.”
“It is one thing to have the right to bear arms, it is another to have laws, such as carrying without a permit, that make it easier for senseless acts of gun violence like this to occur in our state.”
“I wish our Republican friends in Austin would pass sensible gun laws so our voters feel safe in public.”