Berkeley police responded to reports of gunfire in two nearby locations in South Berkeley on Thursday night.
Multiple callers reported hearing gunshots on the 1600 block of Russell Street around 9:40 p.m., said Lt. Angela Hawk, a Berkeley Police Department spokeswoman. When officers arrived, they found “numerous casings” in the street, she said in an email to Berkeleyside.
“Shortly after receiving the calls for the Russell Street matter, BPD officers responded to the 2900 block of Mabel Street for similar reports of gunshots,” Hawk said.
Police discovered shell casings there as well, and damage to a home in the area, but no victims were found in either case.
It’s “unknown if the two incidents are related this time. Investigation is ongoing,” Hawk wrote. The Mabel Street location, near San Pablo Park, is about half a mile directly west from the initial site where gunfire was heard.
Neighbors wrote about hearing the alarming gunshots on Twitter.
“Crazy automatic weapon fire on Russell St.— sounds like a damn war zone. Major #BPD response,” wrote Paul Rauber at 9:44 p.m.
According to unconfirmed scanner reports reviewed by Berkeleyside, multiple callers reported sounds of automatic gunfire to BPD as well.
At 10:16 p.m., Allyson Bogie wrote on Twitter: “Police setup on Mabel and Ashby is major. I heard the shots.”
The Thursday night incident was the second shooting on the 1600 block of Russell Street this year. In March, a man was shot in the hand on the block. He was expected to survive, authorities said at the time. Police also found a crashed vehicle and damage to multiple cars that night.
