12 wounded in Toledo shooting near Old West End Festival

Gunfire broke out near Toledo’s Old West End Festival just as the Saturday crowd was building, leaving at least 12 people wounded, two of them critically, and turning one of the city’s signature summer celebrations into a scene of panic and flight.

Toledo police said the shooting began around 5:30 p.m. to 5:37 p.m. near Delaware Avenue and Glenwood Avenue in the Old West End neighborhood. Officers said it appeared that two people were firing weapons and were “probably shooting at each other.” The victims ranged in age from 14 to 61, underscoring how quickly violence swept into a gathering that draws families, neighbors and visitors to one of Toledo’s best-known historic districts.

Witnesses and officers described a chaotic aftermath as festivalgoers scrambled for cover and others rushed toward the wounded. The crowd size, the narrow streets and the density of the festival area complicated the response, even as police said extra officers, off-duty security personnel and mobile surveillance cameras were already in place for the event.

No suspects were in custody hours after the shooting, and police said an active search was underway. Toledo officials urged residents and visitors to send in photos, videos and other information from the area to help investigators identify the shooters and piece together the sequence of events. The appeal reflected how heavily investigators were expected to rely on crowd-sourced images from a festival that filled neighborhood blocks with thousands of people.

The shooting struck during the 53rd annual Old West End Festival, a two-day event in Toledo’s historic district known for live music, food markets, a beer garden, house tours, shopping and the King Wamba Carnival Parade. Organizers later canceled Sunday’s festival events after conferring with law enforcement and the City of Toledo. That decision closed out a weekend meant to showcase the neighborhood’s historic architecture and community pride, instead leaving officials to reckon with how to protect public gatherings without turning them into fortified spaces.

State Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson said she heard the gunfire and saw young people running for safety. Gov. Mike DeWine said he was deeply concerned about the situation in Toledo. For city leaders, the episode laid bare a familiar but difficult challenge: keeping a major public festival open and accessible while defending it against fast-moving violence that can overwhelm even a visible security presence.