By Robert A. Cronkleton
The Kansas City Star
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — For the first few hours of the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade and rally, police radio traffic sounded much like what anyone would expect from a large citywide celebration.
There were lost children being reunited with parents. Medics attending to fans and spectators who had fallen, fainted or had other medical problems. And of course, intoxicated people, according to audio of radio transmissions captured by Broadcastify.com.
The chatter from the radio traffic was nonstop as dispatchers and commanders managed ambulances, medical resources and officers for traffic and crowd control.
At about 1:30 p.m., officers responded to a shooting at 27th Street and McGee Trafficway on the south side of Crown Center, according to Broadcastify.
Initially, police had problems finding the second victim. When a gunshot victim was found a few blocks away near Main Street and Grand Boulevard, there was confusion whether a third victim had been found, according to the audio.
Officer Alayna Gonzalez, a spokeswoman with the Kansas City Police Department, at the time said there were only two victims, both with non-life-threatening injuries. The shooting was away from the parade route and rally area.
When asked about the shooting Wednesday, Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said it was not known to be connected to the violence at the rally itself.
“Right now, we don’t have any information that those are related,” Graves said. “But that’s under investigation.”
While officers were investigating the shooting, radio traffic indicated that a pocket drone was flying in front of the stage at Union Station, a car was doing doughnuts near 18th and Oak streets and police were getting ready to escort buses and vehicles of dignitaries from the rally.
‘We have multiple victims’
“We got shots fired,” said an officer over the radio shortly before 2 p.m.
“What’s your radio number and location?” a dispatcher asked in return.
Initial reports started coming in that people had been shot. Meanwhile, officers were asking for a description and location of the shooter.
“We have multiple victims over here,” another person said. “West of the stage in the parking lot near Pershing and Kessler.”
“All staff on the west side and east side of rally operations, take cover,” a person said. “Stay out of the east. Stay out of the west.”
One officer advised he had two people with gunshot wounds.
“All units, shelter in place,” a dispatcher said. “Shooter on the west side of the Union Station. All units shelter in place.”
One person advised that two people had been shot and that CPR was in progress near Pershing and Kessler. Another advised that a victim was found under the awning at Union Station. Another victim was found in the parking garage with a gunshot wound to the leg.
Meanwhile, officers were asking for a description of the shooter. They were told the suspects were two males last seen running east through the crowd on Pershing.
A dispatcher advised at the time there were five patients with gunshot wounds, one with a gunshot wound to the neck. At the west side medical tent, emergency medical workers advised that they had multiple victims.
“We’re trying to determine the number at this time, but we got more coming in,” a person said.
The number of victims kept rising as police and medical personnel located more. The conditions of the victims varied.
Meanwhile escort crews were told to get ready immediately.
Mass casualty incident, possible active shooter
“All units be advised, shots fired inside Union Station,” a dispatcher said. “Shots fired inside Union Station.”
By that time, the patient count had risen to nine. Shortly afterwards, a person in west command asked dispatchers to alert all available hospitals for a possible mass casualty incident with a possible active shooter.
A dispatcher advised all units not to shelter inside Union Station.
“We have a shooter in custody, right in front of Union Station,” one officer said shortly thereafter.
Meanwhile officers were making plans to evacuate people out of Union Station by clearing the outside and making sure they “have a safe path for everyone to get out.”
At one point, a person advised that they were out of ambulances at one location, except for the VIP ambulances.
“Let’s lock down Union Station and not let anyone inside,” a person said. “Make sure that we are checking everybody is outside as well.”
One officer advised he had a group of people inside Amtrak waiting room next to Harvey’s.
“Everybody seems to be OK,” the officer said as he asked for an additional officer to come over and help.
Ambulances responding to the shooting scene were directed to head down Kessler and wait on Pershing, according to the radio traffic.
“PD is securing the shooting scene and will come in and guide you to your patient,” they were told. “Remain outside on Pershing until PD comes and meets you.”
Meanwhile, a person advised that there were several buses ready to go and the Chiefs were wanting to send them.
Shortly thereafter, command asked officers who heard the shooting inside Union Station to confirm whether one had actually taken place.
Officers then were advised that a person was being detained on the west side of Union Station.
About 2:25 p.m., the initial clearing of Union Station was completed and tactical officers were working to get the Chiefs players out, according to Broadcastify.
Officers were told that the scene at Union Station was still unsecured a half hour after the shooting.
A commotion occurred around 2:30 p.m. after someone set off what was believed to have been fireworks. Officers who were running in that direction were told to slow down.
“We were just told we believe it was fireworks, and hope so,” a person said.
Police then received reports of gunshot fired in the area of 25th and Cherry streets, east of Crown Center. At the time, a person said it was unknown if the shooting was a walking wounded from Union Station or a separate incident.
Officer Alayna Gonzalez on Thursday said there were no additional incidents of note regarding violent crime.
It was unclear in the audio when the buses left Union Station, however. Interstate 670 was shut down about 2:40 p.m.
About an hour after the shooting, tactical teams were sweeping the garages in Crown Center looking for possible suspects.
Meanwhile, police were still trying to reunite parents with their missing children.
“For the child reunification center, we got to change that because 2301 Main is a crime scene,” a person said over the radio. “We’re going to use the northwest corner of Pershing and Main if you could broadcast that, please — any missing children or parents looking for their children.”
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