A woman is in critical condition after being shot Wednesday morning in southwest Atlanta, authorities said.

Police were called just before 9:20 a.m. to the 400 block of Cooper Street in the Mechanicsville neighborhood for a person shot. At the scene, located near Eugenia Street, officers found a woman with a gunshot wound.

Police were on the scene Wednesday in the area of Cooper and Eugenia streets in the Mechanicsville neighborhood.

Credit: John Spink / John.Spink@ajc.com

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Credit: John Spink / John.Spink@ajc.com

The victim, who was not publicly identified, was taken to the hospital in critical condition, police said.

Carlos Neal, who lives in the area, said he heard a gunshot and saw the woman fall on Cooper Street, about 50 feet from a homeless encampment. He said the woman was awake, but she appeared critically injured.

Neal said she came to the encampment every night, and was likely not the intended target.

”It was very upsetting,” Neal said. “Normally there don’t be no gunfire over here.”

Police said detectives are investigating the shooting, which happened about a half-mile southwest of where the Downtown Connector meets I-20.

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