DETROIT – Detroit police say there is no evidence that shots were fired in the moments before a crowd of people ran for safety Monday night near Hart Plaza during the fireworks celebration.
Witnesses tell Local 4 that right after the fireworks show got started on the Detroit River a crowd of people, who thought shots were being fired in the area, ran for safety.
About 10 minutes into the show, police responded to a report of shots fired nearby -- and people panicking in the streets.
Michael Dwyer was watching the fireworks.
"Just hundreds of people started running in our area, jumping over the fence to get away from whatever chaos was going on," said Dwyer. "Nobody knew, where we were sitting, what happened."
On video, crowds of people could be seen running from the area of Congress and Woodward back to Jefferson.
Police said people hearing fireworks reverberate off buildings likely thought that sound was gunfire.
Roger Cooper was pushed to the ground and said he had to cover his grandson as waves of people ran over them.
"They were stomping on me. I grabbed him, ran, picked him up and by that time, they were just all over me," Cooper said.
Cooper's daughter, Tamia Lewis, was also knocked down.
The family is also heartbroken over their dog, who went missing in the chaos.
Watch: Man injured, dog missing after fireworks stampede
The white Shih Tzu, named Kobe, was wearing a collar and a red, white and blue bandanna.
--Kobe