The city of Abbeville has a curfew tonight.
In a one-line Facebook post, the curfew was set by the Police Department from 10 p.m. Saturday until 6 p.m. Sunday.
In a press release we received today, there are details about a shooting that left four people wounded Friday night, as well as more details on the curfew:
"Chief Mike Hardy has called for a 10:00pm – 6:00am curfew for the City of Abbeville for the safety of its citizens. Anyone on our streets after 10:00pm will be stopped and interviewed. The only reason you should be on our streets is to travel to your home or to go work," the release states.
Here's the post:
Abbeville has been struggling with violence lately. Friday night, four people were shot in one incident.
Police report that there were multiple calls reporting shots fired near a dollar store in the city. One person was shot, callers reported. There also was a report of shots fired at a houka lounge near the store.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found a crowd of people yelling and screaming, with some people trying to help gunshot victims. Cars were leaving, going in all directions.
Abbeville Police took control of the scene and began documenting evidence, taking statements, and coordinating efforts of all agencies involved, while Vermilion Task Force assisted with crowd control, and crime scene security.
Abbeville General Hospital reported four gunshot victims arriving at the Emergency Room for their injuries. Because of the high volume of gunshots spent at the location all area hospitals were also put on alert, they may receive injured victims from our city.
The Abbeville Police Department is continuing the investigation into this shooting and are asking anyone with information to contact them.
Friday night's shooting incident was not the only violence in the city lately.
Last week we covered a town hall meeting about public safety in Abbeville, and just about 10 days ago, the police issued a press release asking for help in solving a rash of shootings.
There were calls to report shootings that ranged from a single bullet hole in a house to more than 50 rounds fired in one location in a residential area, police said.
Multiple callers reported seeing two vehicles chasing each other while shooting, and one police dispatcher reported that calls were steady for 15 minutes, and by 3:30 a.m. Monday gunfire had damaged seven houses and one business, and had sent two people to the hospital, police said.
Officers would respond to a shots fired call, start investigating the crime scene and talking to victims, and before they were done they would hear gunshots just a few blocks away, police said.
