Police vehicles along Chemeketa Street Northeast in downtown Salem Friday, March 18 as officers respond to a shots fired call. (Ardeshir Tabrizian/Salem Reporter)
UPDATE: The shelter in place downtown is lifted as the incident has been contained, according to an emergency alert at 3:47 p.m. Read an updated story here.
Original story below:
Salem residents are being asked to shelter in place downtown Friday afternoon as police received a report of shots fired near the Salem Center mall.
Witnesses described a confrontation between two groups of young people at the mall, with one firing multiple shots from a gun.
Amirah Montaner, 19, of Salem, said she was on the phone when she heard an argument between a group of four teenagers and a group of about 10 inside the mall.
Montaner said she heard somebody say something like, “If you really have it show it” before hearing shots fired.
“I looked up and I see the smoke coming from the gun as he’s running away and shooting back at them,” she said. She said the people involved looked about her age.
Officers responded to the area of High Street Northeast and Chemeketa Street Northeast, the department said on Twitter. Police said at 2:42 p.m. the situation was “NOT an active shooter incident” and that officers were searching for a suspect.
As of 3:10 p.m., officers were clearing the mall, the Salem Police Department said on Twitter.
An emergency alert from the region’s 911 service at 2:32 p.m. said, “There has been an incident downtown…please stay indoors. Avoid travel. We will notify again when we receive an all clear.”
Salem police spokesman Lt. Treven Upkes said the department would release more information later Friday afternoon.
