Three people are shot and wounded in Kennywood Park during a fight at its fall fest

Two teens and a man were shot in the legs late Saturday after gunfire broke out during a fight in Kennywood Park shortly before it was scheduled to close, prompting police from Pittsburgh and multiple Mon Valley communities to converge on the park in West Mifflin.

In a statement early Sunday, Allegheny County Police did not identify the male gunshot victims but said two of them are 15 years old and the third is 39 years old. Paramedics took the man and one of the teens to hospitals for treatment of gunshot wounds to the legs. The man was treated and released, and the teen was in stable condition early Sunday, according to police.

The second teen left the park after being shot, but a relative later took him to a hospital for treatment of what police called "a grazing wound." He also was in stable condition early Sunday, police said.

Police said the three were shot at 10:49 p.m. after an altercation broke out between two groups of juveniles in front of the Music Express Ride inside the park. Shots were fired during the altercation, and police said they recovered a gun near the shooting scene. No arrests were reported Sunday morning.

Police are investigating using the park's security cameras and witness statements, KDKA-TV reported. County police asked anyone with information or video to contact investigators. The Pittsburgh Public Safety Department said in a social media post that its officers were assisting.

The park says on its website that all guests, staff and management must pass through metal detectors at the entrance gate, and all bags, purses and coolers are subject to search. The site also says “weaponry of any kind is strictly prohibited at the park."

Park security officers, as well as West Mifflin and county police officers who were working security details in the park, responded quickly. But the report of gunfire, shortly before Kennywood was scheduled to close at 11 p.m., drew swarms of additional officers from nearby communities as other park patrons rushed toward exits to flee from the park.

In a tweet at 12:02 a.m. Sunday, Pittsburgh Public Safety said city officers "are assisting with the report of shots fired at Kennywood."

Other tweets from park-goers and onlookers also showed marked police cars from several communities as well as a vehicle from the Allegheny County mobile crime unit. County police announced at 12:30 a.m. that there was no longer an active-shooter situation within the park.

Traffic was snarled around the park early Sunday due to the heavy police presence in and around it. Kennywood Boulevard reopened to traffic shortly before 2 a.m.

Kennywood officials tweeted a brief statement early Sunday, saying the park had closed after "a situation that occurred [Saturday] evening" and that they were working with police, adding "The safety of our guests and team members are our top priority."

The park will remain closed today and will not reopen until Friday, Sept. 30, according to a brief statement on its website.

Saturday night was the first night of the park's popular Phantom Fall Fest, which it describes on its website as a "signature spooky-season event."

"Come early for family-friendly fun, including festive food and a unique autumn atmosphere. PLUS enjoy your favorite coasters and rides during the day! Then, when the sun goes down, the Phantom takes screams to the extreme with seven haunted houses and four scare zones," the event description reads.

Ward Troetschel, of West Mifflin, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he arrived at about 9:45 p.m. Saturday and saw “way too many unaccompanied minors.” He said he left at about 10:30 p.m. because young people were being aggressive and “trying to start fights.” As he left, groups of at least 100 ran past him two or three times, Troetschel said, calling it a scene with “lots of chaos.”

Don Orkoskey and his wife didn’t want to wait in the long line for The Exterminator ride on Saturday night and were already heading for the exits when they saw two boys run into each other and start tussling and throwing punches near the Musik Express ride.

It was “Fright Night,” he told WESA, so it wasn’t unusual to see a bunch of scared teens running toward them. They had already seen actors at the theme park in costumes dressed as clowns with chainsaws scaring people.

So at first, when Orkoskey heard what sounded like fireworks, he thought it might be part of Kennywood’s haunted attraction. “The ride was going at the time and as they were wrestling around then we heard pop, pop, pop.”

Thomas Harrison of Irwin told the Tribune-Review that he was with his fiancé and parents when the shots were fired, and then people were screaming, running and pushing each other over to get out of the park.

“Kids were crying,” Harrison said. “Some people were looking for their loved ones.”