Caylee Hammack is, thankfully, uninjured after performing at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in Northern California, where three people were tragically killed along with the gunman. Hammack was performing at the food festival along with rising acts Waterloo Revival and King Calaway.
“WE ARE OKAY!” Hammack posted on social media. “We left right before all this must’ve happened and we are okay. [waterloorevival] [King Calaway] and us all played today but we believe are all safe and away from the festival now. This makes me sick. There was so many smiling faces today, just enjoying the beautiful day together. My heart and prayers go out to the 11 injured. [Gilroy Garlic Festival]”
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According to an eyewitness, Julissa Contreras, a man started rapidly firing a gun, firing off three to four shots a second.
“It was just rapid firing,” she told NBC News. “I could see him shooting in just every direction. He wasn’t aiming at anyone specifically. It was just left to right, right to left. He definitely was prepared for what he was doing.”
15 people have so far been reported as wounded in the shooting. The gunman has since been identified as 19-year-old Santino William Legan. Police are currently searching for a potential accomplice.
King Calaway also spoke out on social media after the shooting, assuring fans they had escaped uninjured.
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out,” the six-man group wrote. “We’re all ok. Sending our love to everyone at the Gilroy Garlic Festival and the emergency services at the scene [heart emoji].”
This is, unfortunately, not country music’s first interaction with a shooting rampage at a festival. Gunman Stephen Paddock killed 58 people and injured hundreds more on Oct. 1, 2017, at the Route 91 Harvest Festival, where artists like Maren Morris, Jake Owen, Michael Ray and more had previously performed. Paddock opened fire while Jason Aldean was performing on stage.
“It was the worst night of my life,” Aldean told the PBS series, Breaking Big. “My wife, who was seven months pregnant at the time, was at the show, and I was separated from her, so trying to find her and just getting her and the baby somewhere where they were safe.”
Hammack has several more fairs and festivals scheduled before she hits the road this fall to perform on Miranda Lambert‘s Roadside Bars & Pink Guitars Tour. Find a list of all of Hammack’s upcoming shows by visiting CayleeHammack.com.
Photo Credit: Getty Images/ Steve Jennings
