An exchange of fire on Monday night in Harlem, New York, ended with eight people suffering from bullet wounds. Those shot and wounded were found by police on Lenox Avenue north of 125th Street and several other nearby areas, authorities said.

Police launched an investigation into the Harlem shootings. Investigators said they believed the conflict first began at nearby Marcus Garvey Park where gun shots were reported.

The first gunshot was reported at about 10:14 p.m., with another at 10:17, two more at 10:19, and another two at 10:24, an Emergency Medical Services spokesman said.

The shootings were reported from different locations nearby, including one at 131st Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard, said the spokesman according to The New York Times.

Authorities arrived at the scene as soon as possible. The area was sealed off with the neighboring streets being closed by police and officers searching for suspects.
The residents were advised to stay inside their homes.

There are indications that a man who had been attacked earlier at Marcus Garvey Park at 124th St. at a basketball tournament took his revenge later in the day.

Luther Rackley, a 62-year-old who witnessed the scene, said a man with a gun “shot them as he found them”, the New York Daily News reported.

However, police said they are also considering the possibility of more than one shooter because there were too many people shot in too many locations. Among the wounded there was also a 13-year-old boy who was shot in the leg and a 16-year-old who got shot in the foot.

A 20-year-old man was shot in the chest and was reportedly in critical condition on Tuesday morning at Harlem Hospital Center. Police said the latter victim was involved in an unrelated shooting at 131st Street and Lenox Avenue. An 18-year-old man was found lying on a bench, but it is not sure whether he was stabbed ore shot.

The other victims are reportedly in stable condition at St. Luke's and Harlem hospitals. Medical staff at the hospitals said the victims are expected to live.

According to the residents who witnessed the scene, the shooter continued to fire his gun even after the police officers arrived at the scene.

Police investigators don’t know what caused the shootings and do not have a suspect yet.