Reports of gunfire kicked off crowd stampede after Davis vs. Romero
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Chaos broke out following the Gervota Davis vs. Rolando Romero boxing event at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York after a ‘sound disturbance’ had fans fearing an active shooter was in the building.
Ten people were taken to hospital with minor injuries caused by crowd surges in the ensuing stampede as some fans rushed to leave the arena area and others tried to get back in from the concourse. Tweets from people inside the building at the time give a glimpse of the confusion as reports of gunfire and an unknown attacker spread.
Tennis star Naomi Osaka was at the fights that night and told a harrowing tale of being barricaded in a room after hearing about ‘an active shooter.’
I was just in the Barclays center and suddenly I heard shouting and saw people running, then we were being yelled at that there was an active shooter and we had to huddle in a room and close the doors, I was so fucking petrified man.
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) May 29, 2022
This wasn’t just a panic created by fans. Security inside the building and police were also initially under the impression that a shooting had taken place.
A Barclays Center security supervisor told ESPN there was a person with a gun in the main plaza that led to a stampede back into the arena. Multiple people transported to hospital. Official estimated approximately a dozen injuries. Among them: a concussion and an elbow injury. https://t.co/LPfMO5qPzT
— Mike Coppinger (@MikeCoppinger) May 29, 2022
No shots were fired inside Barclays, a source told SI. Whatever happened took place just outside the building.
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) May 29, 2022
In the end, NYPD detective Adam Navarro told multiple press outlets that an undefined ‘sound disturbance’ from outside the building was misconstrued as gunshots and there was no shooter or shootings in the area that night.
It’s unsurprising that fans inside the arena reacted so seriously after rumors of a gunman started spreading. Last week the United States suffered another tragic school shooting that saw 19 children and two adults gunned down, just one of several terrible mass shootings over the past several weeks.
All we can be is thankful that this turned out to be a false alarm and no one was hurt seriously in the ensuing panic.
