1 Dead, 2 Injured In Shooting At Senior Apartments In Washington State

Police said that a resident of a Vancouver, Washington, senior apartment complex opened fire in the building's lobby. The motive for the shooting is still unclear.
Police units respond to the scene.
Police units respond to the scene.
MattGush via Getty Images

Police in Vancouver, Washington, say that one person died and two were injured Thursday after a man opened fire in an apartment complex for seniors.

Police said the shooting happened in the building lobby around 2 p.m. local time by a man who lives there. By the time police arrived, the suspect had locked himself in his apartment. After a negotiation, he was taken into custody without any further gunfire, police spokesperson Kim Kapp told reporters.

Washington State Patrol spokesperson Trooper Will Finn confirmed that a suspect is in custody.

KPTV-TV reported that the two surviving victims were taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver, a level 2 trauma center. The hospital’s Dr. Tracy Timmons told the station that the two patients are in “satisfactory condition,” meaning that they are awake and their vital signs are stable.

PeaceHealth did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for confirmation of the patients’ conditions.

Kapp said at an earlier press conference that the suspect was inside the 15-story building and speaking over the phone with officers, but that the incident was not a hostage situation.

Police shut down the elevators while negotiating with the suspected gunman, which meant they could only evacuate some of the residents, because it was difficult and unsafe for many of the seniors to leave the building.

Local authorities have not released any information about the suspect’s identity or motive, citing the ongoing investigation.

Vancouver is a city in southwest Washington, just outside of Portland, Oregon.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot