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Philadelphia Fourth of July shooting: 2 officers shot during Welcome America festival

PHILADELPHIA — Two law enforcement officers were hurt when gunfire erupted Monday night during a Fourth of July event in Philadelphia, authorities said.

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According to WTXF-TV and WCAU-TV, the incident occurred shortly before 10 p.m. near the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where crowds were watching fireworks after a Jason Derulo-headlined concert at the Welcome America festival. Philadelphia police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said two officers assigned to the event’s security detail were on Spring Garden Street when they were struck by gunfire, the news outlets reported.

A bullet grazed the head of a 36-year-old Philadelphia police officer assigned to the highway patrol division, while a 44-year-old Montgomery County bomb squad member suffered a gunshot wound to the shoulder, authorities said. Both officers were rushed to a nearby hospital and later released, WCAU reported.

Outlaw added that the bullet that grazed the younger officer became lodged in his hat.

“It is miraculous, the fact that the round stopped in his hat,” Outlaw said, according to WTXF. “I think initially, it went up inside and hit his forehead, and then the round stopped in his hat.”

Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 5 President John McNesby sent WTXF photos of the cap with the bullet still inside.

>> Click here to see the images (WARNING: Graphic.)

Authorities have not announced any arrests in connection with the shooting, according to the news outlets. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the shooter had intended to hit the officers or had been firing “celebratory” rounds, WCAU reported.