A seven-year-old girl was left fighting for her life after a gunman opened fire on a memorial service 300 metres away from one of London’s busiest train stations.
The attacker also injured a 12-year-old girl and four women in the drive-by shooting outside St Aloysius R.C. Church near Euston station around 1.30pm on Saturday afternoon.
Metropolitan police said the seven-year-old was in a "life threatening" condition and a 48-year-old woman had potentially "life-changing injuries".
Two other women - aged 54 and 41 - were being treated for non life-threatening injuries, while the 12-year-old suffered a "minor leg injury". A 21-year-old woman was also taken to a central London hospital after the attack.
No arrests have yet been made, the Met Police said.
Eyewitnesses claimed the gunman fired on mourners from a "black car" while they were paying their respects to Fresia Calderon, 50, and her daughter, Sara Sanchez, 20, who died last November.
Jaouida Ifghallal told the local news outlet MyLondon: "When the service finished, we were outside to see the flying of doves.
"A black car came and started to shoot bullets. It was chaotic."
Another witness said the congregation fled inside the church to escape the hail of gunfire.
"No one knew if it was a bomb or gunman. We were looking for places to hide. We all just snuggled into corners where we could," they said.
"We left after about 10 minutes, I did not dare [leave before]. It was not nice."
'It is just unspeakably awful'
Father Jeremy Trood, of St Aloysius church, told The Telegraph: "I heard the shot or the bang. It was a single, loud noise, which was clearly not a normal noise - not a normal street noise. And then there was shouting and screaming and people were just rushing back into the church.
"The impression I gained was that it was a car. That is what everybody who rushed back into the church were saying, that it was a drive-by [shooting]. But I didn’t hear a car. But to be honest with the church on a busy road, there are cars all the time, so you don't really notice them."
He added: "It's just so unthinkable that someone would shoot into any group of people really, but people coming out of a memorial. It is just unspeakably awful."
London Ambulance Service confirmed they treated all six victims at the scene on Phoenix Road, before rushing them to hospital.
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, said the shooting was "deeply distressing".
"This is a deeply distressing incident and my thoughts are with those who were injured and their families," he said.
"A police investigation is now under way and I am in close contact with the Met Police to determine what happened."
St Aloysius Church remained sealed off on Saturday night as police continued their enquiries.
Residents returning home expressed their shock at the attack.
"I came back and saw all the commotion near the block where I live. It’s shocking to be honest," said one man, who asked not to be named.
Superintendent Ed Wells, from the Metropolitan Police, said: "Any shooting incident is unacceptable, but for multiple people, including two children, to be injured in a shooting in the middle of a Saturday afternoon is shocking.
"Our thoughts are with all the victims, but in particular with the seven-year-old girl who is in a life threatening condition and with her family.
"An investigation into this dreadful attack is already well under way involving local officers and specialist detectives.
"I can assure the communities of Camden and beyond that we will do everything we possibly can to identify and bring to justice those who were responsible.
"Local residents can expect to see an increased visible police presence in the area through the weekend and into the days ahead as we progress this investigation."
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said on Saturday: "I am deeply concerned by the shocking shooting incident in Euston this afternoon, which has sadly involved a seven-year-old girl and several women.
"My thoughts are with them and their families."
The memorial service had been held for Ms Sanchez, who passed away from leukaemia on Nov 30, just 25 days after she watched her mother collapse and die in front of her at Heathrow Airport.
The pair had just returned from Columbia. The trip was intended as a final goodbye for Ms Sanchez, who had been battling leukaemia for the past three years.
Since her cancer diagnosis aged 17, Ms Sanchez said her determination to pursue increasingly gruelling treatment was driven in part by the fear of how her mother would cope if she did not survive.
"The only reason I am doing CAR T-cells [an experimental cancer therapy] is because I know how hard it would be for my mum if I was to die," she told MyLondon last year.
A family member told the news outlet that the "unexpected passing" of her mother "hurt Sara beyond repair".
They added: "Sara gave up all hope for her future and lost the drive to fight cancer."
