(WGN) – Multiple Chicago suburbs on Monday announced they would be canceling their Fourth of July events after a mass shooting in Highland Park, Ill., left at least six people dead and many more injured.
Evanston, Morton Grove, Deerfield, Glenview and Glencoe all announced they were canceling their scheduled events after the Independence Day shooting.
“Due to a tragic mass shooting that took place earlier this morning in Highland Park, the Evanston will be canceling this year’s 4th of July Parade & celebrations effective immediately,” the municipality’s police department tweeted.
“Out of an abundance of caution amid the developing situation, the Morton Grove Days 2022 parade has been cancelled,” the Morton Grove Police Department said in a statement issued through Twitter.
The Glenview Police Department and Village of Glencoe both acknowledged in statements on Twitter that there were “no incidents or direct threats” to either area but would be forgoing their events anyway.
“Due to a shooting in Highland Park, Family Days activities at Jewett Park have been cleared and the parade is canceled. Please share that the parade activities are canceled with your family and friends,” the Village of Deerfield tweeted.
The Highland Park shooting occurred earlier on Monday morning following the start of a parade in the Chicago suburb, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. At least six people have been reported dead, and the suspect was not immediately taken into custody.
Lynn Sweet, a columnist and the Washington bureau chief of the Sun-Times, tweeted out a video showing a band playing during the parade as people started running in the opposite direction, past the band.
“My staff and I are closely monitoring the situation in Highland Park. State police are on the scene and we have made all state resources available to the community. We will continue working with local officials to help those affected,” Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) tweeted.