TORREON, MEXICO (BNO NEWS) — At least 11 people were killed after a group of gunmen opened fire against a rehab clinic for drug and alcohol addicts in the northern region of Mexico, officials said Wednesday.

The incident occurred on Tuesday at around 5 p.m. local time when a group of gunmen arrived at the Victory Center for the Recovery of Alcoholics and Drug Addicts, which is located in Torreon, Coahuila. The gunmen arrived on five vehicles and stormed in the clinic before opening fire for around 30 minutes. Upon the arrival of local police, eleven bodies were found scattered in the clinic’s two floors, where the patients were carrying out their daily activities.

In addition, two others were transported to the Red Cross where they were reported to be in critical condition. Members of the Mexican Army were deployed quickly to stand guard at the Red Cross where the victims were receiving treatment, as it is not uncommon for gunmen to break in and kill their wounded targets.

The State Attorney General said a ‘Code Red’ was activated around 30 minutes after the incident began, deploying all police forces in the area to the scene of the incident. The group of gunmen fled the scene and a car chase and shootout was reported on Diagonal Reforma Boulevard, but local authorities did not confirm the report.

(Copyright 2011 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)