Two dead, five injured in Toronto street festival shooting

Gunfire tore through Salsa on St. Clair in Midtown Toronto shortly after 8 p.m. Saturday, leaving two men dead and five others injured as an estimated 13,000 people crowded the street festival near St. Clair Avenue West and Arlington Avenue. What began as one of Toronto’s largest Latin-culture celebrations became a sprawling emergency scene in the St. Clair West neighborhood.

Toronto police said the shooting appeared to involve an exchange of gunfire between two individuals targeting each other, not a lone attacker. Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said investigators recovered two firearms after the shooting and had identified three crime scenes. No arrest had been made by Sunday morning.

Police later said six people suffered gunshot wounds, with two men killed, one at the scene and one later in hospital. Toronto Paramedic Services said seven people were taken to hospital overall, including one with life-threatening injuries and six with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, and one additional person was not transported.

Organizers canceled the festival’s final day as the investigation continued. Toronto police Chief Myron Demkiw said the service would be relentless in its pursuit of those responsible. Mayor Olivia Chow called the shooting reckless and irresponsible and said families, children and seniors had been among the crowd. Ontario Premier Doug Ford also condemned the violence and said the perpetrators must be caught and brought to justice.

Investigators were still working through video evidence and the three crime scenes on Sunday, as police continued to piece together how gunfire erupted in the middle of a public celebration. The cancellation of Salsa on St. Clair’s final day left the festival closed under police investigation, with officers still searching for answers about who opened fire and why.