Chicago Gang Fireworks Battle Lights Up Street
A video appears to show rival gangs fighting it out with Roman candles.
— -- A recent video appears to show young men shooting fireworks at each other in Chicago’s Near West Side neighborhood.
A group of young men reportedly fought it out Tuesday with Roman candles, fireworks that shoot out sparks.
The back-and-forth duel was between two rival gangs in the neighborhood, according to one person who claims to have witnessed the event, and they battled it out while bystanders caught it on video and have since posted the action on social media.
Police eventually came to break up the fight, according to the witness who was there and later posted a close-up shot of the nighttime disruption on Tumblr.
"Roman candle battle on Western Ave. in Chicago. between 2 rival gangs. But also ( as a local resident described ) between friends who all knew each other and grew up together," according to the post. "I did the same thing with my friends in the suburbs… not with the same context however. No one got hurt and the police came and broke it up."
The witness also posted on Instagram:
The full 1-minute and 40-second video titled "Chicago Roman Candle Streetwar" was posted to YouTube June 2 and, as of now, has almost 500,00 views.
There were apparently no injuries and no signs of damage other than leftover debris from the fireworks. There were no arrests, police said.