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'It's concerning': Three shootings within 48 hours leave Winnipeg residents on edge

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Jamie Stagg was getting ready for bed around 2 a.m. on Tuesday when he heard a noise. He now believes they were gunshots.

"Then 15 minutes later, cop cars, six or eight of them, just streamed towards the front out here," recalled Stagg.

According to police, officers found three people suffering from gunshot injuries inside a suite on Spence Street and a fourth victim nearby.

Police said all of the victims were taken to hospital. Three are now in stable condition and one is in guarded condition.

It's one of three shooting incidents to happen in Winnipeg within 48 hours.

The first was on Amherst Street in St. James early Monday morning.

Police found two teenagers who had been shot. Both were taken to hospital in critical condition.

One of the teens, a 15-year-old, died of his injuries. The other, 17, is now in stable condition.

A second shooting took place in the St. Matthews area later Monday morning.

Police said a woman was found dead with a gunshot wound on Beverly Street and another person was taken to hospital in unstable condition.

"I live down here. I live in this area, so obviously it's concerning to me as a person," Riley Davidson, who lives near the Beverley Street shooting.

"Just sort of taking into consideration that I walk by that place so often and what if I had walked by and this had happened during that time, you know?" said Stagg when asked if he was concerned.

Police Board Chair Markus Chambers said gun violence is at an all-time high in Winnipeg.

He noted the City of Winnipeg is working with police.

"The [Firearms Investigative Analysis Section] unit we have not only helps in terms of gun control but also helps to identify where those guns are coming from and hold those accountable that are using guns for violent crimes," said Chambers.

Mayor Scott Gillingham said on top of more partnership, the root causes of crime need to be addressed.

"It's very concerning. As I said a moment ago, the amount of violent crime in Winnipeg, Winnipeg's crime severity index, is too high," he said. "Violent crime in our city is something no one wants."

While the shootings are upsetting to those who live nearby, it hasn't changed the way they feel about their neighbourhoods,

"I don't necessarily feel unsafe here because when I'm here because I'm inside my apartment. I don't walk around this neighbourhood a lot," said Stagg.

"I mean, obviously, there is some danger in this neighbourhood, right? I haven't been shot at, but I have had knives pulled on me," said Davidson. "That being said, I mean, ultimately, no, I still live here by choice."

CTV News reached out to the Winnipeg Police Service, but it declined an interview. 

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