From staff reports

A Vicksburg man and woman were being treated at the hospital late Saturday night after at least one gunman entered a bar in Marcus Bottom and opened fire, police said.

Alisha Allen, 26, and Otis Hall, 46, no street addresses available, were being treated in the emergency room at River Region Medical Center after being taken there separately in personal vehicles, Deputy Chief Mitchell Dent of the Vicksburg Police Department said.

Allen was shot in her right hand, and Hall was shot in the back. Dent said he believed the bullet that hit Hall also exited his body.

About 15 people were picked up and taken to police headquarters after the shooting was reported at about 10 p.m. at Bottoms Up, 2618 Halls Ferry Road, but no charges had been filed by near midnight, Dent said,

“We have a couple of more people we’re interested in to pick up,” he said.

Dent said the club, near the intersection with Bowmar Avenue, was shut down immediately after the shooting and was expected to remain closed through today. Under city ordinance, it normally would have been allowed to be open until 2 a.m.

Dent said no weapon had been found, but “several shell casings found in the club appear to have come from a medium- to large-caliber gun.”

“Individuals have given us information to indicate there was only one gunman and others have said there were two, but we can’t tell yet,” Dent said. Investigators were still talking with witnesses, he said.

He said ballistics tests would help determine how many weapons were used.

Dent said at least one of the shots appeared to have been fired just inside the front door and others were throughout the club, though he said investigations had not shown yet whether the injuries were random or intended for the two victims.

Investigations had shown that a hired security officer was at the bar and at least 50 people — the maximum allowed — were inside the club when the shooting occurred, Dent said.

The club, he said, has been a point of interest for months because of complaints of loud music and remaining open after-hours.

Dent said a decision on whether the city might permanently close the club, where a beating was reported early this year, would not be made until after the investigation into Saturday night’s shooting was complete.

By city ordinance, if the police department wants an establishment closed because it is considered a danger, approval must come from the City of Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen.