Shootout Has South Side Resident Fed Up
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Some South Side residents are thankful to be alive this Thanksgiving, but fed up with violence in their neighborhood.
The area used to be known as a hip place to live, but has become increasingly dangerous.
And after a shootout Tuesday night, one resident has had enough.
"The usual deal here," South Side resident Rich Katz said. "The bars let out and it's basically a riot – an out-of-control riot."
But for Katz, closing time on the South Side overnight was something completely different, dangerously different.
"Two-twenty-five in the morning, just started firing off," he said. "I counted at least 10 shots probably more."
A gun battle took place, with two groups of men shooting it out in front of Katz' Bingham Street home.
"Bam bam bam … bam bam, it wasn't stopping," Katz said. "The bullets were flying everywhere; the bullets hit my car a couple of times."
Nearby homes were also hit by rounds.
On the third floor of his building, in terror, Katz hit the deck.
"I was on the floor calling dispatch and the gunfire was still going off," he said.
One of the bullets hit one of the alleged shooters in his leg.
The man collapsed on Katz' car, bleeding all over it and screamed out – not for help, but for more ammunition.
"He's screaming to his buddies that, "I ran out of bullets,'" Katz said.
Police showed up quickly and a few people were taken in for questioning.
The man who was hit went to the hospital, but his name and condition have not been released.
Katz meanwhile, is looking to start up his muscle car and drive on out of the South Side for good.
"Who would wanna move here now?" Katz asked. "It's crazy. I've been living in fear here for the past two years, two, three years. It's been going completely nuts here."
Police have released little information as to what caused the shooting.
RELATED LINKS
More Local News
More Police News
More Reports From Ross Guidotti