'Our little town has been a war zone:' 7 hurt in 2 nights of violence in Swainsboro

Swainsboro, Ga. (WTGS FOX 28) — "Over the last two days our little town has been a war zone."

That is how Swainsboro Police Chief Randy Ellison began a news conference Friday.

In the past two days, seven people have been wounded. Five of them were shot, including a grandfather and his granddaughter, who were just sitting on their porch.

Police say so far, three people have been arrested: two juveniles and one adult. Two other suspects are still on the loose.

Friday, county and city officials held a news conference about the violence. They say two new gangs in town are responsible.

The recent violence started Wednesday night. Police say that's when someone fired multiple rounds at homes and a car on Martin Luther King Boulevard.

When police got to that scene, they found several bullet casings, but no one was hurt.

Moments later, they say a victim with a gunshot wound showed up at Emanuel Medical Center.

Less than 24 hours later this this came over the scanners: "All units... just received 1 call about gun shots on new street...Units be advised... they're saying shots fired and a car wreck....We got multiple subjects shot. Go head do an all call. We're going to need everyone you can get."

Police say two rival gangs got into a shootout on Lucky Street near Lewis Street.

In all, four people were shot and two people hurt in a car accident.

Two of those victims were a 59-year-old grandfather, Willie Brown, and his 11-year-old granddaughter were just sitting on their porch when it all went down.

Police say they found more than 10 rounds that were fired and a car with weapons surrounding it in the middle of a road.

Now, locals and police say something needs to be done before it gets any worse.

"If I lived in that neighborhood, I'd be scared," said Ellison. "I'd love to tell you you shouldn't be scared, but we've had too much."

"We're gonna beef up patrol, you're going to see officers riding double, officers out on foot, officers trying to make a connection in the community to what is going on in these neighborhoods, and you're going to see individuals being stopped and checked," he said.

"If we have individuals at 2 a.m. walking down the road with a backpack, we're probably going to want to know what's in that backpack. If that inconveniences someone well I'm sorry, but I don't think there's a jury in this county that'll say that's not smart law enforcement. I'm not going to infringe on anyone's rights. We don't police that way, but at some point the safety of the public has to inconvenience all of us, that's just where we are with this," said Ellison.

Police say you can call their tip line at 478-289-0800 to report anything that seems suspicious.