Killadelphia: 8 Teens Shot Near SEPTA Bus In Northeast Philly

Just hours after the last shooting injuring four and killing one involving mass transit in Philadelphia was reported, yesterday it hit the wires that another “mass shooting” took place near a SEPTA bus in Northeast Philadelphia.

One teen is “fighting for his life” while 7 other teens are recovering, NBC Philadelphia reports. 

The incident occurred at around 3 p.m. near Northeast High School at Cottman and Rising Sun avenues, where students were waiting for a bus. Three assailants opened fire, shooting over 30 rounds from across the street, wounding eight teenagers.

Surveillance captured them exiting a blue Hyundai Sonata and attacking as a bus arrived, then fleeing. The victims, aged between 15 and 17, included seven boys and a girl; two are critically injured.

Descriptions of the gunmen have been released. The shooting prompted a lockdown at a nearby elementary school and hit two SEPTA buses without injuring passengers.

Police have impounded a car believed to be involved in the shooting, seizing a blue Hyundai Sonata found parked on Roselyn Street in the Olney area of the city on Wednesday night. The vehicle, now at a local impound lot, is said to match the description of the dark blue 2019 Hyundai Sonata identified as the getaway car in surveillance footage.

Mayor Cherelle Parker commented: “The purpose of our being here today is to inform you all that enough is enough. That every law enforcement partner that we have here in the city of Philadelphia is actively engaged in working together to ensure that every resource that is needed is readily available so that the work can be done to solve crimes.”

Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel added: “It’s hard to sit here in three days and have 11 juveniles shot who are going and coming from school. The cowardly acts that we’ve seen over the last three days are unacceptable, The downstream impacts if we do not address gun violence and we do not address guns is what we see today.”

“We cannot ignore what we’re seeing over the last three days. I will not sit here and people call me and tell me what I should or should not be doing,” Bethel continued.

“This is what we see when we give guns in the hands of juveniles and what they do with them. Telling kids they should not carry guns because they’re scared. Really? This is the end results of what we see. So we’re going to work hard and continue with the men and women behind me and my team to get these guns off the street and stop this from happening.”

This marks the fourth recent shooting near SEPTA properties, with 11 juveniles shot in the city this week. Other incidents involved fatal shootings and arguments, with no arrests made yet.

WANTED for shooting 8 juveniles on 3/6/24 at 7300 Rising Sun Ave. Suspects armed and dangerous – do not approach. If you have information on these suspects -please call or 215-686-TIPS(8477) or 911 pic.twitter.com/cspPIL5LLv

— Philadelphia Police Department (@PhillyPolice) March 7, 2024