A 17-year-old girl from Seaford is dead and eight other people are recovering from gunshot wounds after someone opened fire into a crowded outdoor party in Ellendale, Delaware on Halloween night. Delaware State Police say shots rang out around 10 p.m. Saturday in the 18000 block of Beach Highway, striking nine people in all, ranging in age from 17 to 22.
The teenage victim was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries and later died, according to NBC10 Philadelphia, which reported the shooting was carried out by an unknown suspect firing from a neighboring property into the party crowd. As of Sunday, she had not yet been publicly identified, delawareonline.com reported.
A Chaotic Scene on Beach Highway
A 20-year-old man from Seaford was hospitalized with life-threatening gunshot wounds; NBC10 Philadelphia reported he was among the injured rushed to area hospitals. According to 6abc.com, that same patient was later listed in stable condition. Seven other victims suffered non-life-threatening gunshot injuries and were also taken to area hospitals, per 6abc.com’s report.
NBC10 Philadelphia identified those seven injured victims as two 17-year-old boys from Selbyville, a 19-year-old woman from Ellendale, a 20-year-old woman from Seaford, a 20-year-old man from Seaford, a 20-year-old woman from Greenwood, and a 22-year-old woman from Laurel. Roads near Ellendale were shut down Saturday night as troopers worked the scene, the news outlet wgmd.com reported. A post from the Delaware State Police social media account placed the active scene at N. Old State Road and Beach Highway, warning residents of an increased police presence in the area for an extended period.
Investigation Remains Active, Police Seek Tips
The Delaware State Police confirmed the agency is leading the investigation into the deadly shooting, and the case remains ongoing. No suspect, motive, or arrest has been publicly confirmed in connection with the gunfire. NBC10 Philadelphia reported that state police urged party attendees and anyone with information to come forward, asking tipsters to contact Detective B. McDerby at (302) 741-2821.
Separately, wgmd.com reported that a vehicle fire was reported near Ellendale around the same time as the shooting, though it is not known whether the two incidents are related. The outlet did not provide further detail on the fire's location or cause.
A Second Delaware Shooting the Same Night
The Ellendale shooting happened the same night that six people were shot along a crowded stretch of Main Street in Newark, near the University of Delaware, during Halloween celebrations, according to NBC10 Philadelphia's earlier coverage of that separate incident. Delaware Governor Matt Meyer released a statement addressing both shootings, according to news.delaware.gov, which described the governor weighing in on the Newark and Ellendale incidents together.
A 2025 report from delawareonline.com found that shootings statewide had decreased nearly 39 percent from the state's record high in 2020, even as the outlet noted a recent uptick in fatal gunfire. The dossier evidence does not establish how Saturday's shooting fits into that broader statistical picture, and police have not released any information tying the Ellendale case to a specific motive or circumstance. For now, the investigation into what happened on Beach Highway remains open, with troopers asking anyone who was at the party or who has information to come forward.
