By Andrew Hay
TAOS, NM (Reuters) – Two people were killed and six injured in a shootout at a motorcycle rally in Red River, northern New Mexico on Saturday, state police said.
Bikers began shooting at each other on the main street of the mountain town about 75 miles northeast of the state capital, Santa Fe, during its annual Memorial Day motorcycle rally, said by phone Red River Mayor Linda Calhoun. She said three people were killed and five injured.
“These were members of a motorcycle gang,” Calhoun said, declining to give more information about their identity. “They were all people from out of town.”
Some 28,000 bikers from across the country were expected to attend the rally, which includes live music and remembrance ceremonies at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at nearby Angel Fire.
Some of the injured were taken to hospital in Taos, New Mexico, about 40 miles southwest, state police said on Twitter.
The city of Taos banned the sale of alcohol after the shooting and imposed a curfew.
The incident comes eight years after nine bikers were killed and 18 injured in a shootout in Waco, Texas, involving members of motorcycle groups such as the Bandidos and the Cossacks.
(Reporting by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Kim Coghill)