Police shot one suspect who initiated a gunfight with officers during a massive brawl outside Six Flags Over Georgia, reports say.
The incident happened Saturday in Austell, Georgia, on the park's opening day.
Police were called to assist with an "unruly" crowd of about 500 to 600 people around 6:15 p.m. who were "running through the park and fighting," the Cobb County Police Department said in a statement to Newsweek.
"Cobb County Police and Security were able to follow the crowd out of the park onto Six Flags Parkway near South Service Road," police said in the statement.
"As officers followed the crowd out, ensuring they left the property, an unknown number of suspects fired at officers. An officer returned fire, striking one of the suspects," the statement said.
Authorities confirmed to local station WSB-TVthat the suspect shot was a 15-year-old. The teenager was transported to the hospital.
Six Flags Over Georgia said the brawl happened on South Service Road outside of the park and did not occur on park property.
"Our goal is to provide safe, fun entertainment. We employ state-of-the art security systems and metal detection, maintain a robust and vigilant Public Safety Department, and have strong support from Cobb County Police, who are present both inside and outside the park. Every guest is expected to follow our strict code of conduct and anyone unwilling to follow that code of conduct is unwelcome," Six Flags Over Georgia said in a statement to Scripps News.
"It is incredibly disappointing that our community is disrupted at public events throughout the region by groups of underage youth. Just like other venues in the area, we are committed to keeping this type of trouble outside our park and off our property. There was police activity involving gunshots; we want to confirm there was no shooting at our property or parking lot. This took place on South Service Road, which is not owned or operated by Six Flags. However, we join our community and the Atlanta region in our commitment to safety and security. We won't put up with that type of activity here," said the park.
An investigation into the incident is underway.
Scripps News has reached out to the Cobb County Police Department and the Cobb County Sheriff's Office for more information.
