Splash pads provide a community's residents with a means to escape from the heat and — given their relative safety compared to public pools — to avoid physical harm, but that playful setting was shattered Saturday in suburban Detroit when a gunman opened fire.
As reported by The Associated Press, authorities on Sunday identified the perpetrator as 42-year-old Michael William Nash of Shelby Townshiph, Mich. Nash took his own life, and his motives remain unknown as investigators work to determine if he left behind any hint of his plans.
Authorities said Nash drove to suburban Rochester Hills on Saturday and opened fire at the splash pad in a city park around 5 p.m.
Oakland County sheriff Mike Bouchard said Saturday evening that the gunman had no prior criminal history but apparently suffered privately from what the sheriff called “mental health challenges.”
“It’s our understanding that he was undergoing some mental health challenges, but no one that we know of was notified,” Bouchard said during an evening news conference.
Though apparently no one other than Nash himself was killed during the incident, the splash pad shooting represented one of at least four mass shootings that took place around the country Saturday night and early Sunday morning.
