One man is dead after shootout and crashing his car in Central Fresno

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A shootout on Blackstone Avenue turned into a chase and finally a crash after police said three men opened fire in a parking lot.

It all started in a Jiffy Lube parking lot on Blackstone and Saginaw in Central Fresno. Police said three men approached the driver inside a Honda Accord and began firing shots.

"After he was shot he jumped on Saginaw, went southbound on Blackstone and lost control and struck a Smart Car," said Lt. Joe Gomez, Fresno Police Department.

The Smart Car driver was rushed to the hospital, but the shooting victim was still in his car in front of the business where Vivianna Chavez works. She dropped everything she was doing and rushed out to help.

"I asked him if he was ok and he didn't respond, and that's when I looked down-- I saw he was bleeding from the side."

After seeing that Chavez ran back inside and dialed 911 and when police arrived an officer started CPR. When the officer got tired, Chavez stepped in.

"He was just gasping for air and then stopped, and every once in a while you would hear the little gasp."

The man-- in his 20's or 30's-- ended up dying from his injuries.

"You don't want anything bad to happen to anyone and he looked fairly young-- it's just sad," said Chavez.

The shooting forced a couple of the businesses in the strip mall marked with crime scene tape to close shop early.

A frightening sight that left a number of people driving through shocked.

"It's terrible. I mean, a lot of this stuff that goes on now shouldn't be going on and, I mean, you can't even drive down Blackstone without someone shooting at you. That's pretty terrible," said Brryan Croud, Madera.

Blackstone Avenue between Ashlan and Dakota was shut down for some time.

Police at this time are not saying if this is gang related, but they do tell us the area is known for gang violence.