Two people have died and two others were critically wounded this afternoon by a gunman, according to the Oakland Police Department.

The violence, which authorities say arose from a verbal altercation, occurred somewhere on 83rd Avenue in East Oakland. The suspect was witnessed fleeing the scene, and an investigation is ongoing.

This is the second fatal shooting this week, and the third this month.  It comes two months after 14 people were shot at Lake Merritt on Juneteenth, and a month after local rapper Tan DaGod was shot and killed outside of a beauty store.

Oakland saw an uptick in gun violence during the COVID-19 pandemic, however homicides are down in the city this year compared to last year by about 10%.

In an effort to combat the issue, Mayor Sheng Thao resurrected the previously successful Operation Ceasefire program in January, which was shutdown after a critical report was released by the California Partnership for Safe Communities, a nonprofit that helps Oakland and other cities develop their own gun violence reduction programs.

In a statement to the San Francisco Chronicle, Mayor Thao said that reviving the program is a "critical component" of her plans to increase community safety, and that it "achieved success in reducing shootings, homicides, recidivism and victimization for those at highest risk.”

Previously: Woman Shot and Killed in Oakland Identified, Was Mother of Eight Confronting Alleged Drug Dealers