Gunfire quickly ended the annual Scoop Waukegan early Saturday evening downtown as members of the city police and fire departments swiftly moved from crowd management to dealing with a crime scene.
David Motley, the city’s public relations director, said Sunday afternoon that sometime after 6 p.m. Saturday “an incident occurred in the vicinity of Genesee and Washington streets, bringing the festival to an end.
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“Currently, there is an ongoing investigation led by the Waukegan Police Department and further details will be released when the investigation is concluded,” Motley said.
Deputy Police Chief Craig Neal said in a news release that the shooting was an isolated incident. As soon as the shooting occurred, police began to process the scene and ended the festival.
Throughout the day, there was a heavy police and other first responder presence, ensuring people followed required protocols and maintained safety. When gunshots were heard, they quickly shifted gears, according to the release.
“The scene was contained immediately by onsite first responders who secured the area, provided medical attention and ensured the safety of festival attendees,” Neal said in the release.
Motley said Sunday that someone was transported from the scene to Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan. No other details were released.
Before the shooting ended the event, Motley said the 2026 Scoop Waukegan broke all records for attendance. A year ago, 1,100 cars were part of the event. More people arrived to show their cars Friday night than came altogether a year ago. Those who wanted to return on Saturday brought the vehicles back.
“We printed 1,500 registration sheets (and) … we ran out,” he said.
Before the event was called off, thousands of people spent the day looking at hundreds of different types of cars, from century-old classics to customized low riders on 10 blocks of the city’s downtown.
Scoop’s origins stem from a time in 1964 when young people congregated in downtown Waukegan to meet friends and make new ones. Many brought their cars and drove on Genesee, sometimes adding a passenger. Motley calls them the original scoopers.
One of those original scoopers was Jerry Cook. He came to “scoop the loop” with his friend from kindergarten, Bob Petaky. Petaky wanted Cook to meet his then-girlfriend’s friend. The friend eventually became Mrs. Cook.
“We began dating and were married in 1972,” Sue Cook said.
Jerry Cook died on July 3 at the age of 77 before he could bring his 1964 Chevrolet Impala to this year’s Scoop. He wanted to be at Scoop Saturday, so Sue Cook and their daughter Laura Van Dien made sure he was. Inside the car was an urn containing Cook’s ashes.
“I hope Jerry is looking down and sees how many cars are in the show,” Sue Cook said. “He would be so happy.”
After the original Scoop the Loop ended in the late 1960s, Motley said the event had a variety of forms. In 2013, Scoop Waukegan took its current form as original scoopers like Cook, Pataky and Ron Celesnak worked with Viejitos Vicleros, a global car club with a chapter in Lake County.
Motley said they worked together to transform a custom from the 1960s into an event for current times.