Shooting at a Ramadan event in Parkside, West Philadelphia

What was supposed to be a joyful Eid al-Fitr celebration in a West Philadelphia park on Wednesday ended in pandemonium after a shootout between two groups of people left three shot dead and five arrested, leaving the city's Muslim community devastated was shocked.

About 1,000 people gathered at Clara Muhammad Square to share a meal and celebrate the end of the Ramadan fast, hosted by the nearby Philadelphia Masjid. Around 2:30 p.m., as children played and adults mingled, at least 30 shots rang out in the middle of the crowded park – sending hundreds of people running for their lives, abandoning belongings and diving under tables.

Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said two groups of young people began shooting at each other for reasons that are still under investigation. Two people were shot in the crossfire – a 22-year-old man in the stomach and a 15-year-old boy in the hand – while another teenager was shot by a responding officer, Bethel said. All were in stable condition.

Police officers providing security at the event in the city's Parkside neighborhood were checking nearby cars when the shots rang out, he said. Bethel ran toward the sound of gunfire and said police arrested three men and a woman who allegedly fled the scene with weapons.

These four people – a 21-year-old, two 16-year-olds and a 15-year-old – were taken into custody.

A responding officer also shot a 15-year-old who was holding a gun, hitting him in the shoulder and leg, the commissioner said. Bethel said the teen did not shoot the officer and declined to reveal more about the exchange, citing the ongoing investigation.

The emergency services rushing to the scene also hit a 15-year-old girl with their patrol car, said Bethel. She suffered a broken leg and was treated at a nearby hospital.

In total, police recovered five weapons at the scene – four handguns and a rifle, according to two police sources familiar with the case. Bethel blamed youth culture Gun violence for disrupting an otherwise peaceful celebration and said the groups were not representative of event-goers as a whole.

“Ninety-nine percent of the people who attended this event are good people who wanted to have a good time,” he said. “And once again we're dealing with young people committing shootings and really destroying the sanctity of what happened.”

News of the shooting spread quickly throughout Philadelphia's Muslim community, whose members have been on high alert in recent months amid a rise in Islamophobic incidents in the area.

In the hours after the shooting, traces of chaos were still evident in the park. Food containers, strollers, prayer mats and clothing lay abandoned on the sidewalk. Trash cans had been overturned near the park's playground, littered with water bottles and personal items left behind by a fleeing crowd.

“We are frustrated that this has turned into a beautiful day,” said Dwight Olds, program director for the Institute for the Development of African American Youth.

“They elevated the day of prayer,” said Don Jones, an anti-violence advocate and leader of Philly’s Muslim community. “There were children here. This is not acceptable in our communities.”

Just last week, he said, about 20 local imams met with city leaders to come together as a Muslim community and denounce violence. The group had planned an event in front of City Hall on Friday morning to make this stance public.

Haniyahh Dwight, 42, said she came from her home in Chester to Clara Muhammad Square to celebrate Eid at one of the region's largest events – “one of the largest gatherings” for the festival after Ramadan, she said.

She was waiting in line for food when she said she heard a quick bang. Everyone began to flee. Dwight said she looked up and saw people falling and pushing past each other.

“This is an event that is about peace,” she said. “I just do not understand.”

People dove under tables, dropped to the floor, and ducked behind trees and garbage cans.

“Where is my child?” According to a witness, a mother screamed.

Surrounding schools were cordoned off and police set up a parent-child meeting point to connect people who scattered when the gunfire broke out.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker came to the scene and said her administration would provide trauma support services to those affected by the shooting, Bethel said.

On Wednesday night, Parker released a statement on social media: “In the midst of Eid al-Fitr, a holy day of celebration, our city’s Muslim community witnessed a sacrilegious act of gun violence in a West Philadelphia park today. Every religious community has the absolute right and necessity to worship in peace.”

Parker added: “We stand united with the Muslim community and vow to work together to restore balance and light to our communities.”

Ahmet Selim Tekelioglu, executive director of CAIR-Philadelphia, lamented the violence that erupted outside one of the city's largest mosques.

“It’s a tragedy regardless of the cause,” he said. “Gun violence affects all communities in Philadelphia, especially the Muslim American community.”

City Council member Jamie Gauthier, who represents parts of West Philadelphia, said in a statement Wednesday that the incident was “heartbreaking” and called on lawmakers in Harrisburg and Washington to pass gun safety laws “that will stem the flow of guns into our neighborhoods.”

The shock had barely subsided by Wednesday evening when people began tending to the damage.

Some returned to the park to look for their belongings. A pile of unclaimed phones, wallets and other items piled up in the mosque and remained until the evening.

Meanwhile, young people and adults cleaned up the trash and belongings left behind: shoes, prayer mats, children's toys. In the park, overturned lawn chairs, forgotten coolers and plates of uneaten food lay scattered around the park well into the evening, all scattered as if a tornado had passed through.

It could take hours for the park to be fully cleaned – and much longer for the community to fully cope with the tragedy.

“It was so beautiful. So warm. So persistent,” a woman who did not want to be named for security reasons said of the afternoon. “Here we come to eat and celebrate. For God.”

“It was a different scene than love and gentleness,” she added. “Screaming. Crying. People falling. People being shot.”

Staff writer Anna Orso contributed to this article.