As two boys remained hospitalized late Monday, a witness recounted the horrifying moments a gun battle erupted in the city's Grand Crossing neighborhood, injuring both children.
The shooting was reported at around 1:43 p.m. in the area of 7800 South Escanaba.
One resident said shots were fired as she tried to carry laundry from her car and into her home.
"I saw the car just drove by," she said. "Somebody shoot their head out the window, [the] passenger side. It was two cars, like a gunfight, like a literal daylight gunfight."
According to police, two boys, 12 and 14 years old, were traveling in a car when a black sedan started to chase them. Someone in that vehicle produced a firearm and fired shots toward the victims' vehicle. The victims then ran to the 7400 block of South Kenwood, authorities said.
The 14-year-old was shot in the buttocks and transported to an area hospital in serious condition. The 12-year-old was shot in the stomach and hospitalized in good condition.
Meanwhile, Chicago police chased a vehicle suspected of involvement in another crime scene at 74th and Kenwood.
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The next thing residents knew, a swat situation unfolded at an abandoned home in the Burman neighborhood.
"It felt too surreal this afternoon... I felt terrified," one resident said. "I could not get out of my own car. I need to be safe."
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The tense moments unfolded after police were called to a bungalow in the 7400 block of South Kenwood. As of late Monday, it remained unclear how the scenes were connected.
Neighbors, including one woman who grew up in a home that is now a crime scene, are shaken.
"My kids can’t come out here and play anymore," she said. I don’t feel safe walking to the store anymore. We have a laundromat there, I can’t carry the clothes, my clothes can’t get washed. It’s sad."
"Very devastating," Donnell Pelts said. "I have a 13-year-old daughter, I wouldn’t want that to happen..and sad these kids get hold of guns.
Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect the latest information from Chicago police about the ages of the victims.
