Police say a shot hit a transformer, cutting power to thousands in Beacon Hill and Yesler Terrace.
SEATTLE — A man was critically injured Friday afternoon after being shot during an altercation in the Chinatown-International District. A stray bullet from the incident damaged an electrical transporter, cutting power to nearly 10,000 nearby customers.
Seattle police responded to reports of a shooting at 3:48 p.m. near South Jackson Street and 12th Avenue South. Officers found an adult man with a gunshot wound to the upper body and provided aid until Seattle Fire Department medics arrived. The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center in critical condition.
Detectives with the Gun Violence Reduction Unit are investigating. Police said the victim and a male suspect had been involved in an altercation shortly before the shooting. The suspect fired multiple rounds, striking the victim and damaging an electrical transformer before fleeing north on 12th Avenue South in a light-colored vehicle.
The transformer strike caused a power outage that affected about 8,220 customers in the Beacon Hill and Yesler Terrace neighborhoods, according to Seattle City Light. Service was restored by about 9:30 p.m.
Investigators are working to determine what led up to the shooting.
