Philadelphia Daily News | By Phillip Lucas
NEIGHBORS packed onto a narrow block of Myrtlewood Street between Cumberland and Huntingdon in Strawberry Mansion Thursday night for a prom celebration.
Children played in the street, with red, white and blue streamers overhead and gold balloons spelling out "2012" undulating in the evening breeze from their post on a rowhouse porch.
But the peaceful scene was torn to shreds about 6 p.m. Two 13-year-old girls, who had been playing on the sidewalk, were left bleeding on the street after being caught in the crossfire of a shootout.
One girl was shot in her eye and was listed in critical condition at Temple University Hospital, said Chief Inspector Scott Small. She remained unconscious as of 10 p.m. The second victim was shot in the chest, head and abdomen, and listed in stable condition.
Police took a 17-year-old boy into custody on Cumberland Street near Natrona after witnesses identified him, Small said.
As police canvassed the scene, a young boy scurried past them bouncing a basketball.
Commissioner Charles Ramsey looked on in disgust.
"It makes absolutely no sense at all. This block was loaded with children," he said. "At what point does it stop?"
Ramsey spoke over the sound of laughter and muffled music coming from neighbors on Hollywood Street — just one block away.
They gathered outside to unwind on their stoops and listen to music as dusk settled over the neighborhood.
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