Minneapolis residents and police were subjected to a barrage of fireworks in different parts of the city on Independence Day as huge crowds of young people aimed the explosives at each other and at random people.
Multiple social media posts from Tuesday show fireworks being deliberately aimed at people and police cars. In one case, a large firework was thrown into a crowd of young men and one of them received an abdominal wound after it exploded.
Minneapolis:
— Rebecca Brannon (@RebsBrannon) July 5, 2023
Large mortar firework is thrown into a crowd while an injured person lays on the ground with a serious wound to his stomach.
I had to call 911. pic.twitter.com/RWOroPmgkS
Minneapolis, Boom Island:
— Rebecca Brannon (@RebsBrannon) July 5, 2023
A scene of chaos as police worked to disperse hundreds after 1AM
Many ran away - noticed a lot dressed in black or wearing masks. No mass arrests. All these vehicles seen were part of the group moving across the city throughout the night.#July4th pic.twitter.com/8srQXXBYys
Another video shows someone aiming a rapid fire firework at a Minneapolis squad car. The original poster used the hashtags "somali" and "somalifireworks."
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Somalis Crashout 😭😭😭 #somali #Minneapolis #Fireworks #somalifireworks pic.twitter.com/YLbNkwHV6i
— Salahprime (@Salah_Prime) July 5, 2023
One woman told independent reporter Rebecca Brannon groups of people shot fireworks at her and her neighbors. She turned on the sprinklers to lessen the chance of fires breaking out. The resident was also hurt by a firework.
Woman near Lake Calhoun/Bde Maka Ska told me large groups shot fireworks at her and other residents.
— Rebecca Brannon (@RebsBrannon) July 5, 2023
She had out on sprinklers to prevent fires and showed me her wounds. pic.twitter.com/glpdlziL1i
In addition to the firework attacks, there were several shootings that took place that resulted in at least one homicide.
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