A shooting in downtown Calgary on Wednesday sent one person to hospital with serious injuries, according to Calgary EMS.
Police originally told Global News that officers sealed off a downtown Tim Hortons due to an ongoing incident. They later described the incident as an altercation involving weapons on a bus on 3 Street S.E. and said shots were fired.
They said a tactical unit was inside the Tim Hortons at 4 Street and 8 Avenue S.E., east of the Central Library.
In a news release, police said they were called to an altercation on a bus as it was moving. When the driver stopped the bus, the incident escalated and the shooting occurred, injuring one man.
Police said bystanders attempted life-saving measures for the man, who was transported to hospital in life-threatening condition.
Police said occupants of the bus fled the area during the shooting, including those involved in the altercation. Officers then tracked suspects throughout the downtown area and at a nearby restaurant but nobody was located during the search.
Staff and customers at the Tim Hortons were being kept outside of the coffee shop.
Shortly after 1:30 p.m., police said the area had been cleared but added it was still a “very active scene.”
Police said two people were taken into custody shortly after on Ninth Avenue near Fort Calgary.
A third suspect has not yet been found.
Officers are trying to obtain CCTV footage in order to determine if one of the people arrested was responsible for the shooting.
“It’s very disconcerting… Our folks have been on the transit lines and will continue to be,” Calgary Police Service Chief Mark Neufeld said at an unrelated news conference on Wednesday afternoon.
“This is going on all over the city… It’s a pretty rare event but impactful.”
Calgary resident Louis McCleuskey regularly visits the Central Library and said he isn’t surprised that a serious incident happened in the area.
He said there needs to be more security measures and infrastructure on public transit, such as guard rails on CTrain platforms.
“I’m not surprised (to see this level of police presence),” he told Global News.
“It’s not safe… It’s unbelievable the amount of violence that’s taking place.”
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the police at 403-266-1234 or Crime Stoppers.
–with files from Adam Toy, Global News
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