4:12 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources have clarified the number of victims and the severity of injuries, which have been getting reported vastly differently across the board. We're told, yes ... a dispute between several males along Broadway resulted in someone firing, which hit the toddler once in the leg, a 23-year-old female in the thigh and a 43-year-old female in the left foot. Our sources tell us they were all unintended targets, are all are expected to live.
A woman and a toddler were reportedly shot in broad daylight just now in Times Square -- a random act of violence in which the suspected gunman still hasn't been caught.
Cops have swarmed the area and barricaded the streets, where they say gunfire erupted between West 44th Street and 7th Avenue around 2 PM PT. Law enforcement sources tell us one of the bullets struck the woman.
Breaking: Video shows the moment a woman and child were shot in Times Square. The suspect is on the loose. (Video via Earth Cam) pic.twitter.com/6J70xMZgEc
— PM Breaking News (@PMBreakingNews) May 8, 2021
The child is also said to have been hit, but it's unclear where. In any case, both of them were rushed to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition ... so it seems they're gonna make it. We're also hearing that a third person may have also been shot in the chaos.
The most disconcerting part -- besides somebody trying to gun down a lady and a kid in the middle of the day -- is the fact that the person who did this has NOT been caught yet ... as we're told they're still on the loose as of now. That might explain why there's such a massive police presence right now ... presumably, they're scouring the streets for the shooter.
A vendor in Times Square shared this video with @NBCNewYork, he says he heard “Two shots. They was bleeding the toddler was bleeding and the mom was crying.” pic.twitter.com/3DmJ80J5e3
— Myles Miller (@MylesMill) May 8, 2021
No word yet on a motive, but this appears to have happened out of nowhere ... which makes it all the more terrifying. People captured video of people running upon initial word that a shooting had taken place ... as well clips of the aftermath as cops stood by controlling the crowd and securing the scene. Another video -- taken from an Earth Cam towering above Times Square -- seems to show the exact moment the shots were fired, two of them.
Someone also appears to have snagged video of the moment the victims were rushed into an ambulance by EMTs. Witnesses reportedly say the toddler was bleeding, and the woman was crying. Based on this video, it also looks like some people were booted from the bus.
Breaking: Streets surrounding Times Square are closed to traffic in midtown Manhattan after a woman and child were shot. The suspect is reportedly on the loose. pic.twitter.com/PhisbJw6YT
— PM Breaking News (@PMBreakingNews) May 8, 2021
It's an awful way to help people get ready for the re-opening of Broadway and other NYC venues that have been shuttered during the pandemic. As if folks hadn't already been on edge, this news certainly won't help them feel any safer ... especially considering Times Square is one of the most visible and frequented areas in the city.
If this can happen there, it's not a good omen for what could happen else in NYC.
Originally Published -- 3:23 PM PT