Two children injured in shooting at Detroit water park

Two children are among eight people injured following a shooting at a water park in the Detroit suburb of Rochester Hills.

Families had gathered at Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad to escape the summer heat when a suspect opened fire about 5pm on Saturday, firing as many as 28 times and stopping multiple times to reload.

Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said the random attack left an eight-year-old boy in a critical condition and two of his relatives, including a four-year-old, had also been shot.

The water park is a popular play area for children and boasts a number of sprinklers and fountains.

Police heard the 911 call reporting the shooting as it came in, Mr Bouchard said, because the agency uses a service that simultaneously sends emergency calls to first responders. An officer was at the scene within two minutes.

Mr Bouchard added that the first deputies who arrived at the scene immediately began providing first aid, including tourniquets.

Police cordoned off the scene of the shooting with tape and dozens of yellow evidence markers lay on on the ground among colourful folding chairs. A handgun and three empty magazines were recovered from the scene.

The suspect was contained in a home nearby. Police confirmed the person took their own life.

Rochester Hills is about 15 miles (24 kilometres) south of Oxford, where in 2021 a 15-year-old fatally shot four high school students.

Saturday’s shooting came at the end of the first full week of summer vacation for students attending Rochester community schools.

Mr Bouchard called it “a gut punch” for the county.

“We’ve gone through so many tragedies,” Mr Bouchard said. “We’re not even fully comprehending what happened at Oxford. And, you know, now we have another complete tragedy that we’re dealing with.”

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said on X, formerly Twitter, that she was heartbroken to learn of the shooting and was in touch with local officials.