Man shot at while canoeing on Kansas River

He didn't get a good look at the shooters or much detail about the SUV they were driving. He stopped on shore near the Central Avenue bridge along the Kansas River when someone started shooting at him.

 

"When I was looking through the junk I thought I heard a gunshot and I looked up only to see the muzzle flash of another shot coming from the bridge," John said, who asked to only be identified by his first name for his safety.

 

"I heard six more shots fired in very rapid succession. I looked up and saw the car with its window down and the muzzle flash pointed my direction," John explained. "All the shots hit within 20 yards of me in the water."

 

John hid in some weeds on shore for about five minutes until he knew it was safe to get back in the canoe.

 

"I wanted to get away from where I was so I paddled down the river as fast as I could," he said. "I felt like a sitting duck being in the river with the bridges above me."

 

John called police and two officers were waiting for him once he got back to shore at Kaw Point.

 

"I don't know if the people were trying to scare me or if they were actually trying to hit me," he said. "They succeeded in scaring me for sure."

 

John shared his story on an online forum to warn other paddlers about the area. After John's post, other paddlers commented with their own stories about being heckled and even having rocks thrown at them in that area.

 

41 Action News requested police reports about the incidents, but Kansas City, Kan., Police have not yet responded.