2 shot dead and dozens injured at neighborhood block party shooting in southern Georgia

VIENNA, Georgia (AP) — Two people were shot to death in a hail of gunfire and nearly three dozen others were injured at a homecoming weekend block party early Sunday morning in southern Georgia, according to state law enforcement officials.

More than 1,000 people were gathered at the site, and more than 50 shots were fired in at least two locations about a block apart in Vienna, Dooly County Sheriff Craig Peavy told WMAZ-TV.

Peavy said people were “going every direction” and that, even while officers were on the scene, more gunfire erupted about a block away.

“We don’t know if it’s coming at us or someone else,” he said. “You just have to keep doing what you’re doing and hope you don’t get hit by gunfire.”

The incident took place over homecoming weekend for Dooly County High School.

The shooting was not at a school-sponsored event, said Sherrod Willaford, superintendent of the Dooly County School System.

“We recognize that its impact may reach many of our students, families, and staff,” he said in a statement. Schools will open Monday, he said, but additional safety measures have been put in place. He did not specify what they are.

Dooly County Sheriff’s Office deputies were on patrol at a neighborhood block party around 1:25 a.m. Sunday in Vienna when shots were fired, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said in a statement.

Vienna is about 130 miles (about 210 kilometers) south of Atlanta and about a 50-mile (80-kilometer) drive south on the Interstate 75 corridor from the central Georgia city of Macon, where authorities say 12 teens were wounded by gunfire during a confrontation between people at a birthday party last week at a city park.

Deputies found two people dead at the scene and multiple others who had been shot, officials said. Police did not specify how many of the 35 injured had been shot or provide any details about the injuries or their severity. The victims were taken to several hospitals for treatment, the GBI said.

Dooly County Coroner Brett Walls said the two men, ages 20 and 23, were pronounced dead at the scene with fatal gunshot wounds. He said multiple other people were also shot, calling the scene “horrific.”

Walls told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that multiple people were struck by bullets and roughly a dozen others were hurt while trying to flee.

“This doesn’t — it’s not supposed to — happen in a small town like that. It’s something you hear on the news in bigger cities,” Walls told the newspaper, adding hospitals were flooded with the injured. “And even in bigger cities, you don’t hear that kind of a number.”

Authorities have not said whether any suspects are in custody or being sought. No motive has been given for the shooting.

Vienna Mayor Eddie Daniels said the shooting was about a block from his house and he “saw a lot of blue lights.” Daniels said he hadn’t spoken with law enforcement officials yet and had no details about what had happened.

Daniels said the city hadn’t issued any kind of permit for the block party and he didn’t know if it was a homecoming party.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesperson Lydia Bullard declined to answer questions about the shooting, saying it was an ongoing investigation.

Associated Press reporter Anthony Izaguirre in New York contributed to this report. Bauer reported from Madison, Wisconsin.

Authorities investigate the scene of a mass shooting where at least two people died and 35 were injured when struck by bullets Sunday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Vienna, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

A vehicle drives in the scene of a mass shooting where at least two people died and 35 were injured when struck by bullets Sunday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Vienna, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Authorities investigate the scene of a mass shooting where at least two people died and 35 were injured when struck by bullets Sunday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Vienna, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Authorities, below to the right, investigate the scene of a mass shooting where at least two people died and 35 were injured when struck by bullets Sunday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Vienna, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Authorities investigate the scene of a mass shooting where at least two people died and 35 were injured when struck by bullets Sunday morning, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Vienna, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Golden State Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase was back on the bench and and well enough to coach Game 1 of the WNBA semifinals Sunday against Las Vegas after she went down on the sideline two days earlier in the first-round clincher with what she described as exhaustion.

“Just exhaustion,” she said. “I ate and drank right after and felt better.”

The 46-year-old Nakase said she was examined by a doctor during Saturday's off day ahead of the series opener Sunday and insists she will be “proactive” with both her health and mental health. The players encouraged her to take time for recovery, something she constantly stresses to them.

“I'm good. I had a little exhaustion obviously,” she said. “I think I talked to you guys about what I have to learn from my father. He was an extremely hard-working man. I followed in his footsteps and I thrive in that. But he told me, ‘Natalie,’ this was about 10 years ago when I never knew what I was going to do with my career and he just said, ‘do not let your career ever get involved if your mental health or your health gets complicated.’ So, when that happened, it definitely was like a wake-up call for me but I got checked through the doctors. Obviously everything looks good.”

She plans to something her dad didn't and “be proactive,” such as considering wearing a heart monitor and taking other steps to deal with her extreme work ethic. She already wears a tracking ring to monitor some health statistics.

“Information for me is really important,” she said. “I just want to be proactive, be smart. I understand this job for me I love it, sometimes I love it too much to a point I overwork. I just want to make sure I'm being smart.”

That might mean “no extra, extra, extra film” and sticking to the timeline on a given day.

“It's taking the time and organizing my mornings,” she said with changing game times and schedules. “... Everything's a little bit different with my routine.”

Nakase didn't address the team after the 77-73 win Friday night against the Dallas Wings at Chase Center, when her team rallied from a 16-point deficit.

With 1:40 remaining in the game, she was on the sideline near the Valkyries' bench and lowered to the floor with her head and hands on the court. Nakase was helped up by athletic trainer Katelin Knox. The coach finished the game but exited the floor immediately following the final buzzer escorted by a member of her staff as her team celebrated at midcourt.

The best-of-five matchup with the defending WNBA champion Aces features Nakase coaching against Becky Hammon, who had Nakase on her staff as an assistant coach from 2022-24 — when the team won consecutive titles in 2022 and '23.

Hammon called Nakase a “little mighty mouse work horse, there's no doubt about that.”

“The stress this time of year is real, the pressure, you don't get a lot of sleep, you're not eating as well as your probably should, there's a lot of factors that go into that,” Hammon said. “It was kind of scary actually to watch. That little sucker popped right back up though, popped right back up onto that marker and kept it pushing. She's tough.”

See AP’s full WNBA coverage here

Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase watches play in the first half of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff game against the Dallas Wings Wednesday Sept. 30, 2026, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase instructs her team during the second half of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff game against the Dallas Wings Wednesday Sept. 30, 2026, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)