Two children and a man were injured in a drive-by shooting in Newark Wednesday evening.

Officials say that the shooting happened Wednesday just before 6 p.m. on Irvine Turner Boulevard and West Kinney Street. A 4-year-old and a 7-year-old were hurt, along with a man in his 30s – believed to be the children’s father.

A security guard working in the area tells News 12 New Jersey that the family was driving in a Jeep Cherokee, with the mother behind the wheel, when another car drove up on them and started to shoot into the driver’s side of the car.

Security guard Lamont Lanham says he heard the shots and ran to help.

"As I walked over to the car, the father opened the door and asked can I help get him to the hospital because he might not make it. And I heard the kids crying,” Lanham says. “I looked in the back and I see blood on one of the kids and I guess it was the 4-year-old, who wasn’t moving at the time. Then I asked the mother can she drive and blazed a path to the hospital to get him there."

Lanham got in his security car with the flashing yellow lights and escorted the family to University Hospital. The extent of the injuries was not immediately known.

Police have not yet released a description of the suspect or the suspect’s vehicle.

Newark Public Safety Director Brian O'Hara said in a statement, "We are saddened and outraged that two boys, one 4-year-old and one 7-year-old, were shot tonight while riding in a car with their mother and another adult. The shooter was using a car stolen from Kearny that was left unlocked with the key inside. We need people everywhere to stop leaving their cars unlocked with the key in them. This kind of carelessness is repeatedly contributing to violence and enabling more serious harm to occur in our communities."