The team behind Chicago Fire was forced to stop filming after a shooting occurred not far from the show’s production area on Wednesday.
According to CWBChicago, the cast and crew of the drama series were working at A.A. Rayner and Son’s Funeral Home on the city’s West Side when a gunman began firing from a corner opposite the set.
The assailant ‘fired several shots at people’ before jumping into a black SUV and escaping through an alleyway. The media outlet reported that it was not immediately clear who the shooter was firing towards.
A fire also broke out nearby which caused confusion as the real firefighters were in the same uniforms as the actors playing firefighters on Chicago Fire.
Incident: The team behind Chicago Fire was forced to stop filming after a shooting occurred not far from the show’s production area on Wednesday; a stock photo from the series showing (l-r) Miranda Rae Mayo as Stella Kidd, Christian Stolte as Mouch, Alberto Rosende as Blake Gallo
A spokesperson for the Chicago Police Department later confirmed that an armed gunman ‘shot at a group of people standing in the 5900 block of West Madison.’
A source described as being from the film industry spoke to the media outlet and recalled that the shooting ‘happened mid-take.’
They added that ‘no one was injured on set, but a bullet did ricochet off some equipment.’
In the middle of it all: A source described as being from the film industry spoke to the media outlet and recalled that the shooting ‘happened mid-take’
The cast and crew of the program entered into security protocol immediately following the incident.
Although the Chicago Police Department had provided at least six marked cars to the production team in an effort to strengthen their security, the source expressed that the shooting ‘happened right in front of them all.’
The media outlet revealed that the incident is actively being investigated by police.
Although People reported that the program would resume shooting on Thursday, Variety reported that there was no set date as to when the show’s cast and crew would return to set.
The shooting was not the only incident that occurred near the show’s set on Wednesday, as a fire broke out not far from where the program had been filming.
Looking into it: The media outlet revealed that the incident is actively being investigated by police
According to Fox News, the series’ cast had been practicing how to extinguish a fire when another broke out just down the street from the show’s production area.
One of A.A. Rayner and Son’s Funeral Home’s funeral directors, Charles Childs Jr, spoke to the media outlet and expressed that there was much confusion regarding the costumed actors working on real fires.
He stated: ‘While Chicago Fire Department responded, Chicago Fire television stars and crew were just one block away so people saw the actors and wanted to know why they weren’t responding to the real fire.’
Childs added that ‘while all of this was going on, some idiot used a firearm and shoots at people. We don’t know who was being targeted. We don’t know who the assailant was.’
The funeral director, who stated that there were around 70 people in the set’s vicinity, went on to remark that the events of the day were completely unprecedented in scale.
More problems: According to Fox News, the series’ cast had been practicing how to extinguish a fire when another broke out just down the street from the show’s production area
‘It was chaotic because all these activities were going on at the same time…it was one of those days. You couldn’t have written this in a novel,’ he said.
Childs concluded by stating: ‘We’re all thankful that nobody got hurt here.’
Chicago Fire was created by Dick Wolf and made its debut on NBC in 2012.
The program follows the personal and professional lives of several firefighters living and working in the Windy City.
The show stars performers such as Jesse Spencer, Monica Raymund and Kara Killmer, among others.
The series’ forthcoming eleventh season is currently set to premiere on September 21.
Coming soon: The series’ forthcoming eleventh season is currently set to premiere on September 21
Source: | Dailymail.co.uk
