Eight people were shot, including one person who was fatally wounded, in West Baltimore after city police said a gunman began to fire indiscriminately into a crowd at a Sunday afternoon cookout.

Baltimore City Police confirmed that the shooting happened in the 2500 block of Edmondson Avenue in Baltimore, across from the Perkins Square Baptist Church.

Police said they received a call after 5 p.m. Sunday reporting multiple injuries from a shooting at a cookout.

Commissioner Michael Harrison said a man "began firing indiscriminately into the crowd, striking a number of people," according to NBC affiliate WBAL.

"That person was targeting one, if not more people in that crowd," Harrison said.

One man who was shot collapsed behind a Baptist church nearby and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Harrison said initially that six other people had been wounded and were taken to hospitals. An eighth victim was reported when that person walked into a local hospital with a bullet wound to the leg, police later confirmed. All of those wounded are expected to survive their injuries.

A police statement said five of the survivors were men ranging in ages from 27 to 58, and another was a 30-year-old woman. The name and age of the person who was killed was not immediately available.

Harrison and acting mayor Jack Young, in appearance with reporters, urged members of the public to help investigators with any information as to who took part or a motive.

"Someone knows something," Young said. "These things ... they don't happen by happenstance. People know who's doing these shootings."

The Baltimore Sun reported that bullet casings were found scattered on the ground near grills, and a table still had items on it that appeared to be left from a cookout. Police officers could be seen after the shooting placing small orange evidence markers on the ground, just feet from a barber shop.

Meanwhile, Harrison said authorities were seeking witnesses among the many present Sunday as they begin to try to piece together details of what happened.

Harrison said investigators believe there may have been a second shooter who may have fired shots back at the suspect, but could not confirm that information.

The initial gunman fled the scene.

According to Harrison, there were two cookouts happening on opposite sides of the street at the same time, but it is unclear if the two cookouts were related.