Eight people injured in fiery possible road-rage shooting in Colorado

Eight people were injured and a car and ambulance caught fire in a possible road-rage shooting in Wellington, Colorado, Thursday, local authorities said.

The suspect or suspects shot gunfire at another vehicle on a highway, leading the car to crash and burn, the Larimer County Sheriff said in a release on X, formerly known as Twitter. An ambulance responding to the incident caught fire as well, according to the Sheriff’s office.

Officials originally said six people were injured.

Police say a shooting led to a car crash and fire near Livermore, Colo., on Aug. 31, 2023. (KUSA)

The gunfire did not strike any of the victims in the vehicle, but eight people were transported to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries, according to the Sheriff’s office.

The suspect car left the scene after the incident, according to the Sheriff’s office. The Colorado State Patrol did not immediately respond to NBC News’ inquiry on the ongoing investigation.

Authorities closed highways in the vicinity of the incident. The roads reopened after the fire was extinguished Thursday night, according to the Sheriff’s office.

Road-rage shooting incidents have been on the rise in recent years, according to Everytown Research and Policy, a non-partisan organization that advocates for gun safety in America. Last year, at least 141 individuals were shot to death, up from 70 in 2018.

More than 400 people were injured in road-rage shootings last year, up from more than 170 in 2018, according to Everytown’s analysis using the Gun Violence Archive’s data of shootings in the U.S.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com