Police responded to nine shootings within 16 hours Tuesday and Wednesday that seriously injured two people and killed a service dog, the Portland Police Bureau reported.
While police don’t know if this is a record, it is certainly newsworthy, said Sgt. Kevin Allen, a spokesperson for the Portland police.
“But our concern is not the number because even one shooting causes trauma to our community, and multiple shootings like this only compound that trauma,” he said.
In mid-July, four shootings occurred in a four-hour period that left two dead and at least seven injured. Those four were among 11 shootings in a 36-hour period.
“We don’t want this to be our new routine and we hope to be a part of the larger community solution going forward,” Allen said.
On Tuesday, the first shooting happened just after noon, when officers responded to the Springwater Trail near the 9400 block of Southeast Cooper Street after hearing gunshots. Officers found evidence of shots fired near an encampment, though no one reported being hit or damage to property, police said.
Officers were dispatched before 6 p.m. to the 5000 block of Northeast 101st Avenue after someone reported hearing gunshots. No victims were found, police said.
About two hours later, officers were dispatched to the 1700 block of Southeast 122nd Avenue on a call involving an injured dog. The intended victim was not hurt, but his service dog succumbed to injuries after being shot, police said.
At 9:07 p.m., officers responded to a report of a male shot near Northeast 13th Avenue and Multnomah Street. Officers located the injured man, who was then taken to a nearby hospital with serious injuries, police said.
Three minutes after that, officers responded to a call of a shooting in the 2000 block of North Lombard Street. No one was injured, but a car was damaged by gunfire, police said. Witnesses told police the car owner and the shooter had no interaction before the suspect began firing shots at the car before fleeing.
A half hour later, officers responded to a call of a disturbance-turned-shooting in the 1900 block of Southeast 122nd Avenue, though no victims or damaged property could be found, police said.
Just after 11 p.m., a caller told police shots were fired near North Portsmouth Avenue and Willis Boulevard. Witnesses told officers someone confronted a group then ran when one of the group members brandished a gun and began shooting, police said.
Shortly after 1 a.m. Wednesday, officers arrived to the 6200 block of Northeast Columbia Boulevard on a call of a shooting that injured one person. Officers found a man critically injured from a gunshot, police said. He was taken to a local hospital.
The last shooting happened around 4:25 a.m., and officers were called to the area near Southeast 74th Avenue and Reedway Street on a report of shots fired. They found more than 20 casings and damage to cars and a nearby residence, but no injuries were reported, police said.
The string of shootings brought a pointed response from former state Sen. Avel Gordly, a Portland resident and police reform supporter who was the first Black woman elected to Oregon’s Senate.
“This is Madness! Please give the Mayor and Police Chief the support they need and are wanting for the public’s safety,” Gordly wrote in an email to Portland commissioners. “Those elected representatives and people who do not think we need the Police for crime prevention and more officers for public safety are terribly misguided.”
-- Jack Forrest
jforrest@oregonian.com; 541-222-9808; Follow on Twitter @Jackmandu55