Cincinnati Over-the-Rhine shooting outside bar leaves 9 injured

A manhunt was underway in Cincinnati for a gunman after at least nine people were wounded Sunday in a shooting rampage outside a bar, police said.

Chaos erupted shortly before the 2 a.m. closing time outside Mr. Pitiful’s in the city’s historic Over-the-Rhine district. Lt. Colonel Mike John said none of the injured was in critical condition.

“Most of those injuries are lower extremity injuries,” John said. “We did have officers apply tourniquets at the scene.”

John said one officer fired a shot at the fleeing suspect, described only as wearing a white shirt and dark pants.

“It is a little unusual when we do not know for a certainty whether the individual that the officer fired at was struck or not,” John said.

John said the large crowd began encroaching on officers, and two loud “bang balls” were employed to clear the area so emergency medical teams could reach the wounded.

Cincinnati police union president Dan Hils said the shooter was “part of a large, unruly crowd” on the street.

“Thankfully, everyone shot is expected to survive,” Hils said. “Members of a civil disturbance response team, including the officer who fired at the shooter, did a tremendous job controlling the chaotic and dangerous scene this morning.”

John said many people who fled the scene may have seen something of value to the investigation. He asked witnesses and anyone with video of the shooting to contact police.

A shooting  in the nearby Central Business District left two people wounded, but John said it was too soon to determine whether the attacks were related.

The Cincinnati Enquirer contributed to this report

John said police officers witnessed the shooting and one Cincinnati police officer fired one shot at a fleeing suspect but it is not known if the person was struck.