August 14, 2022
Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice
Apparent gunfire was heard around 10:45 p.m. on Saturday at Musikfest, in Bethlehem, PA, causing the festival to be shut down for the night. The investigation is ongoing, but police said there is no public threat and the festival's final day on Sunday will proceed as planned.
Musikfest in Bethlehem was shut down by authorities Saturday night when apparent gunfire sent festival goers fleeing.
The Lehigh Valley music festival was wrapping up its penultimate night, when at least one gunshot was heard near Main and Lehigh streets causing a "stampede" of concertgoers to run from the scene, NBC10 reported.
The gunfire occurred around 10:45 p.m. and by 11:15 p.m. an area of the north side of the festival was closed off with police tape, WFMZ-TV 69 News reported. Witnesses stated that the fleeing crowd caused people to fall and get stepped on.
Bethlehem Police took to Facebook around 12:30 a.m. Sunday with a press release offering updates on the developing situation.
"There was an isolated incident tonight at Musikfest and the festival was shut down as a precaution for the safety of patrons," police said in the post. "Law enforcement is on site and in control of the situation. There is no known continuing threat to the public."
Information regarding injuries remained unavailable as of Sunday morning, but police did offer an update regarding the festival's final day at 10 a.m. on Facebook.
"On Saturday night, there was an isolated incident at Musikfest," police said in the post. "The incident is under investigation by the Bethlehem Police Department. The City of Bethlehem has authorized the festival to resume at noon today, as planned."
Musikfest scheduling updates are available online, according to police.
Anyone with information regarding the gunfire on Saturday night is urged to contact the Bethlehem Police Tipline at 610-997-6660 or email Detective Klingborg at nklingborg@bethlehem-pa.gov.
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