Gilroy Mayor Roland Velasco issued an emergency proclamation early Monday morning in the aftermath of a mass shooting at the Garlic Festival on Sunday afternoon.
Four people, including the suspect, were killed and 12 others injured in the attack. Police continue to look for a possible second suspect, Gilroy city officials said.
Velasco shared the proclamation on his Facebook page, noting that the proclamation would allow the city to request personnel and equipment and help the city get reimbursed by the state for expenses related to the response and investigation. “This is critically important since we have police, fire and FBI personnel that will remain on-scene for the next few days processing the crime scene,” Velasco said in a Facebook post.
City officials confirmed early Monday morning that the suspect, who was shot and killed by police, was armed with an assault-type rifle.
The shooting was reported at 5:41 p.m. Sunday, Gilroy police Chief Scot Smithee said. “This is a tragic incident for our community,” Velasco said in a statement. “On behalf of the City and the Gilroy City Council, our thoughts and prayers go out the victims and families.”
The shooting suspect appears to have entered the site via a creek that borders a parking area, and used a tool to get past the secure fence line, according to Smithee. Gilroy city officials haven’t confirmed the name of the suspect as of 7 a.m.
Hospitals in Santa Clara County received multiple patients from Sunday shooting, including one person who died, a county hospital spokeswoman said. St. Louise Regional Hospital received six patients from the shooting, and one of those patients died, according to county health system spokeswoman Joy Alexiou. Two others have since been discharged, she said. The conditions of the others ranged late Sunday night from fair to critical. Two of the patients admitted to St. Louise were transferred to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, which also had five other people admitted for injuries related to the shooting, Alexiou said. St. Louise treated five other people for lesser injuries, not necessarily gunshot wounds, Alexiou said. Two victims have been admitted to Stanford Medical Center, according to hospital spokeswoman Lisa Kim.