BRADENTON, Fla. -- Deputies are investigating a rolling gun battle that took place along a busy intersection, leaving one woman shot in the head.
The Manatee County Sheriff's Office responded to a call of a shooting near the intersection of U.S. 41 (or 1st Street) and 26th Avenue West.
According to deputies, suspects from two cars were driving southbound in the area shooting at each other. A 51-year-old woman, who was a bystander and had no ties to the shooting suspects, was parked at the intersection of 26th Avenue East and U.S. 41 when she got shot in the head during the crossfire.
"By the grace of God, the bullet did not enter into her skull, otherwise this would have ended very tragically," said Randy Warren with the Manatee County Sheriff's Office.
Several other cars received bullet holes at the scene, deputies say.
Deputies are investigating whether more people were possibly hurt in the shooting.
These are innocent people that have nothing to do with this argument between these guys with guns and they think they can just drive down the street and start firing like they’re in some movie," said Warren.
Investigators are reviewing surveillance video from several area businesses along U.S. 41.
Bill Cross, who works at Manasota Flooring Inc., heard several alarming pops just after lunchtime.
"These kinds of people really don’t care about the general public that’s involved," said Cross. "All they care about is themselves and what their actions are."
As of Thursday afternoon, deputies do not have a description of the two suspect cars. Deputies believe the incident is related to a separate shooting that happened in the Bradenton Police Department's jurisdiction moments before the shootout on U.S. 41 broke out.
The shooting investigation shut down U.S. 41 in both directions from 17th Avenue West to 28th Avenue West for about an hour Thursday.
Anyone with information on the violent incident is asked to call 941-747-3011.
