Updated April 16, 2023 at 10:03 AM ET
At least four people were killed and multiple others were wounded after a shooting at a birthday party on Saturday night in the city of Dadeville, Ala.
The attack took place just after 10:30 p.m. local time near the town square as people gathered to celebrate a teenager's birthday, according to Heidi Smith, the marketing director of Ivy Creek Healthcare, which runs a hospital in Dadeville. Smith said the hospital treated at least 15 gunshot victims.
Smith said at least 17 ambulances responded to the scene. Some victims were treated and released from the Lake Martin Community Hospital, while several additional victims were transferred to other hospitals — including flown to a trauma center in Birmingham, she added.
There were "multiple injuries," according to a statement from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, which said it had launched an investigation at the request of the Dadeville police chief.
Dadeville is a small city with a population of approximately 3,000 people. It's located about an hour's drive from the state capital of Montgomery.
Gov. Kay Ivey tweeted on Sunday that she was grieving the events in Dadeville, but did not provide further detail on what transpired.
"This morning, I grieve with the people of Dadeville and my fellow Alabamians. Violent crime has NO place in our state, and we are staying closely updated by law enforcement as details emerge," Ivey said.
There have been 163 mass shootings in the U.S. so far this year, not including the attack in Dadeville, according to the independent group Gun Violence Archive. The group defines a mass shooting as any event in which there were four or more victims, excluding the shooter. The Saturday attack comes less than a week after a gunman opened fire at a bank in Louisville, Ky. killing five people and injuring nine others.
This story will be updated. NPR's Amy Held contributed reporting.
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