A TikToker recorded herself unknowingly walking through the scene of a shooting that occurred on the Fourth of July.
In the video, Rachel, who posts under the handle @rachhkent, records her walk in Philadelphia with a text overlay that reads: “Watch me vlog my walk home in philly making jokes as I unknowingly walked through a shooting while joking about walking through what seemed like a shooting.”
“Just wandering the city alone now,” she says with a smile early on in the clip. “Walking home because all the roads are closed.”
Police sirens sound off in the background.
Her TikTok shows a montage of fireworks going off before cutting to her face, which has red and blue lights reflected off of it. “Lots of cops. … No need for this many police officers,” she says.
She continues to walk, talking about hot “goss” she wishes she could talk about on TikTok but says she can’t because she doesn’t want to potentially jeopardize her job. “Sounds like insane explosions,” she says before a helicopter flys from above with a search light.
She comments on how many people and officers are on the street, saying, “It’s like a madhouse in Philly tonight.”
She then whips out a can of mace. “Just in case a bitch wants to try me,” Rachel says with a grin.
“All these explosions are going off in the background, and people are like quickly scurrying back to their homes. … Are we in a mass shooting? No it’s just like, fireworks,” she says.
She ends her video by saying she overheard someone on the phone telling the person on the other line that “shit’s popping off.”
As it turns out, Rachel was walking through the city in the immediate aftermath of the shooting that occurred on the Benjamin Franklin Highway.
@rachhkent I guess the people running could have been a clue 🥲 #philly #4thofjuly #oookay ♬ original sound – Rachel
On July 4 on Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Highway, groups of people reportedly walked the streets at night as fireworks sounded off in the air to celebrate Independence Day. In the midst of the festivities, a person reportedly opened fire, allegedly injuring two officers in the process and causing widespread panic and confusion among pedestrians.
The city’s chief inspector Frank Vanore, per the Philadelphia Inquirer, stated detectives investigating the scene “really don’t have a clear picture of where the bullets came from.” NBC Philadelphia reported Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said the shots were fired from outside of the event, and the identity of the shooter isn’t known. The Philadelphia Inquirer also reported that “detectives were investigating the possibility that the two officers were struck by stray bullets from celebratory gunfire.”
Rachel clarified that “judging by the timestamps,” she recorded the video either during or right after the shooting.
Rachel’s video received 3.3 million views. Rachel seemingly responded to viewers who criticized her for being unaware of her surroundings. “Ten million red flags you just ignored,” one said.
“I‘ve been drinking for the 4th my situational awareness is very poor,” she said in the comments section.
Others found her video humorous, pointing to a portion in which she thought that a man was trying to flirt with her when he asks her to “follow” him and she declines, and then she watched him run away.
“I’m dying at the guy trying to save your life and you’re just like no,” one said.
There were also those who expressed their frustration and heartbreak at the frequency of mass shootings in the United States. “When you said ‘but they’re just fireworks’ ‘everyone’s so on edge’ my heart broke for you. I’m so sorry this is the reality in the US,” one said.
“Honestly. This is peak American experience,” another said.
“This is the funniest and saddest thing ive watched lmfaooo,” a third claimed.
Gun violence is a controversial and oft-discussed issue, especially since the United States has already seen 300 mass shootings in just the first half of 2022. Earlier that day in Illinois, a mass shooting occurred. A 21-year-old was charged with murdering seven people at a Fourth of July parade.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Rachel via TikTok comment.
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