2 injured by gunfire at NJ high school football playoff game

PLEASANTVILLE — A man and a young boy were injured by gunfire while they were in the stands during a high school football playoff game on Friday night.

Pleasantville police said the shots rang out in the home stands around 8:30 p.m. during the third quarter of the Pleasantville-Central Camden game.

The young boy was airlifted to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia “with some serious injuries," Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon Tyner said.

Tyner told The Associated Press the shooting took place on the Pleasantville side of the bleachers. No one had been arrested as of late Friday, and authorities were investigating whether more than one shooter might have been involved.

Authorities did not identify shooting victims nor release information on their conditions other than to say both were alive several hours after the shooting.

Jonathan Diego, who played for the Pleasantville team in 1984, said his friend, a retired paramedic, gave first aid to a young boy who had suffered a gunshot wound to the neck.

“He applied pressure to the little boy’s wounds on his neck, trying to slow down the bleeding until the ambulance could come up,” Diego said.

Video footage from 6 ABC Action News shows fans fleeing the stands after the shots were fired as players stood on the field.

Mike Frankel of Jersey Sports Zone captured the sound of six shots fired as he recorded the game.  He said a dozen police officers were working the game and an ambulance was already at the game.

Pleasantville police Chief Sean Riggin said the two victims suffered "serious injuries" and were hospitalized.

Players told CBS Philly they thought the gunshots were fireworks before running to the sidelines for safety.

A former Pleasantville athletic director told the Press of Atlantic City he saw the gunman run toward the parking lot from the stands.

In a statement posted, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association said it was aware of the incident.

"We are following the initial reports of what took place. In the meantime, our thoughts and prayers go out to those affected in the Pleasantville and Camden communities," the NJSIAA tweeted.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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