In the early hours of November 2nd, what was meant to be a birthday celebration at a rental home in Bath Township, Ohio, turned into a nightmare when gunfire erupted inside a large group gathering. As officials confirm today, 18-year-old Elijah Wells of Akron, who was critically wounded in the chaos, died four days later on November 6. Authorities say at least nine people were injured in total, including seven who were shot and two hurt amid the panicked aftermath.
According to the Bath Township Police Department, dozens of teens and young adults gathered at a rental home on the 900-block of Top O Hill Drive—an address reportedly listed on Airbnb despite local zoning rules that prohibit short-term rentals. The party, advertised on social media, is believed to have drawn the large crowd that ultimately became the scene of violence.
Around midnight, officers began receiving multiple 911 calls from the home reporting shots fired and a harrowing scene. One dispatcher transcript captured the fear: “I think he’s dead. There’s blood everywhere!” called one party-goer, according to the Associated Press.
As the responding law-enforcement team converged, the property was already in chaos. Victims were staggeringly injured—not all by gunfire, but some by falls or stampeding as people fled. The exact number of gun-wounded remains fluid, but initial updates cite seven shot and two hurt otherwise.
No arrests have been announced as of the latest briefing. The investigation involves the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), which along with the state’s chief law-enforcement officer, Dave Yost, will provide an update during a scheduled press conference this morning at 10:30 a.m.
Chief Vito Sinopoli of the Bath Township Police Department expressed that such violence is “unacceptable in our community” and urged anyone who attended or has information to reach out. Investigators are reviewing surveillance footage and interviewing attendees to establish who fired the shots and why.
For families who hoped for a normal night of celebration, the outcome is heartbreak and unanswered questions. Elijah’s death has left a community grieving, and the broader gathering—a mix of teens, social media invitations and an unauthorized rental—raises serious concerns about under-age parties and the dangers lurking when events spiral out of control. Parents and community leaders alike are being urged to stay vigilant and ask exactly where and how their children are gathering.
The rental property’s owner was reportedly unaware of the scale of the gathering, and Airbnb has since suspended the listing and banned the account under its policy against unauthorized disruptive parties. The tragedy in Bath Township underscores how quickly a social-media-driven event can become lethal when weapons, crowding and risk converge.
