Mass shooting at Alabama nightlife district kills 4 injures 18: New updates

A mass shooting killed four people and wounded 18 others in a popular nightlife area in Birmingham, Alabama, with many of the victims caught in the crossfire, police said early Sunday.

Authorities asked the public for tips as they searched for the shooters.

The shooting happened shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday in the Five Points South entertainment district, Officer Truman Fitzgerald said in an email.

Officers found two men and a woman on a sidewalk with gunshot wounds, and they were pronounced dead there.

An additional male gunshot victim was pronounced dead at a hospital, Fitzgerald said.

Injured people began showing up at hospitals, Fitzgerald said. By early Sunday, police had identified 18 other victims with injuries, some of them life-threatening.

Authorities believe the intended target was among the dead, Police Chief Scott Thurmond said at a news conference Sunday morning.

There were no immediate arrests.

A large search for the shooters was underway, and Birmingham police reached out to federal law enforcement agencies for help with the investigation, officials told news agency.

Anyone with information was asked to contact authorities.

The Five Points South area contains entertainment venues, restaurants and bars and often is crowded on Saturday nights.