EAST ST. LOUIS — Multiple victims were reported shot in southern Illinois late Thursday afternoon and three suspects who crashed their getaway vehicle into a passenger train remained on the loose, authorities said.
The St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office said the suspects shot multiple people in East St. Louis, but it wasn’t immediately clear how many, KMOV-TV reported. East St. Louis is about 6 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri.
The shooting suspects tried to out-run a MetroLink train at a nearby crossing and their vehicle was struck, the station said. Police were searching for the suspects in a wooded area.
The shooting happened after 4 p.m., Illinois State Police said in a news release.
The public was asked to avoid the area of the shooting, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
MetroLink was warning of delays of an hour or more in that area. Passengers were being transported by bus shuttles around the two affected stations, said Patti Beck, a communications official with Bi-State Development, which operates MetroLink.
No further information was immediately available.
Photos: Remembering 9/11
Virus Outbreak National Traumas
FILE – In this Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001 file photo, people run away from a collapsing World Trade Center tower in New York. Al-Qaida’s 9/11 attacks against the U.S. killed almost 3,000 people. (AP Photo/Suzanne Plunkett)
Sept 11 Anniversary
FILE – In this Sept. 11, 2001, file photo, smoke rises from the burning twin towers of the World Trade Center after hijacked planes crashed into the towers, in New York City. The coronavirus pandemic has reshaped how the U.S. is observing the anniversary of 9/11. The terror attacks’ 19th anniversary will be marked Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, by dueling ceremonies at the Sept. 11 memorial plaza and a corner nearby in New York. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
Sept 11 Pentagon
A beam of light is seen near to the Lincoln Memorial, as part of the Towers of Light Tribute marking the 19th anniversary of the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Sept 11 Anniversary
Former President George W. Bush places a wreath as former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, right, watches, on the grounds of the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial at the Pentagon in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2019, in observance of the 18th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
FBI 9/11 Pentagon Photos
This undated photo provided by the FBI shows damage to the Pentagon caused during the 9/11 attacks. The FBI released a group of photos on March 30, 2017, showing the aftermath of the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 crash into the Pentagon. (FBI via AP)
FBI 9/11 Pentagon Photos
This undated photo provided by the FBI shows damage to the Pentagon caused during the 9/11 attacks. The FBI released a group of photos on March 30, 2017, showing the aftermath of the hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 crash into the Pentagon. (FBI via AP)
Virus Outbreak National Traumas
FILE – In this Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001 file photo, people run away from a collapsing World Trade Center tower in New York. Al-Qaida’s 9/11 attacks against the U.S. killed almost 3,000 people. (AP Photo/Suzanne Plunkett)
Sept 11 Anniversary
FILE – In this Sept. 11, 2001, file photo, smoke rises from the burning twin towers of the World Trade Center after hijacked planes crashed into the towers, in New York City. The coronavirus pandemic has reshaped how the U.S. is observing the anniversary of 9/11. The terror attacks’ 19th anniversary will be marked Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, by dueling ceremonies at the Sept. 11 memorial plaza and a corner nearby in New York. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
Sept 11 Anniversary
FILE – In this Sept. 11, 2014, file photo, a woman places flowers in the inscribed names along the edge of the North Pool during memorial observances on the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. The coronavirus pandemic has reshaped how the U.S. is observing the anniversary of 9/11. The terror attacks’ 19th anniversary will be marked Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, by dueling ceremonies at the Sept. 11 memorial plaza and a corner nearby in New York. (AP Photo/Justin Lane, Pool, File)