A loud noise sparked a stampede that injured 18 after false reports of an active shooter near the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Sunday morning, Fox26 Houston reported.
Police said that at approximately 1 a.m. on Sunday morning, as the crowd was leaving the arena after the Gervonta Davis-Rolando Romero boxing match, a loud noise was heard that sounded like a gun shot.
The noise spooked those outside, and thinking that an active shooter was firing shots, the crowd panicked and began running back into the arena, triggering a surge that led to injuries.
The NYPD said it was called about a noise that sounded like gunfire but could not say what the sound was. Later on Sunday, they confirmed it was not gunfire.
“After investigating the incident at the Barclays Center this morning, we determined that no shots were fired,” NYPD 78th Precinct said on Twitter.
The loud noise and resultant push by the crowd resulted in 18 injuries. At least 10 people were taken to nearby hospitals.
It was thought that the loud noise was a fight that to some sounded like a shooting, the New York Post reported.
"I was just in the Barclays center and suddenly I heard shouting and saw people running," Tennis player Naomi Osaka tweeted. "Then we were being yelled at that there was an active shooter and we had to huddle in a room and close the doors, I was so [expletive] petrified man."
The incident took place in the aftermath of several mass shootings in the United States that have left Americans worried for their safety.