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Officers fatally shot an armed suspect outside a burning home, police said.
Three people are dead, including a suspected shooter, and two injured following reports of an active shooter and fire at a home in Baltimore County, Maryland, authorities said.
Police officers responding to the Woodlawn neighborhood, west of Baltimore, after 6:40 a.m. Saturday found a man armed with a gun outside a burning residence, Baltimore County Police Department spokesperson Joy Stewart said during a press briefing.
Police fatally shot the suspect, Stewart said. The officer-involved shooting is under investigation and it is unclear at this time how many officers discharged their firearms, she said. The suspect has not been publicly identified.
Two people died, one victim was critically injured and another suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the incident, police said. Authorities have not shared any additional details on the victims.
Two people initially unaccounted for after the incident have since been found.
Police are continuing to search the scene for any other possible victims.
There was no continued threat to the community, police said.
The two-alarm fire destroyed two townhomes and heavily damaged a third, Tim Rostkowski, a spokesperson for the Baltimore County Fire Department, said during the briefing.
#UPDATE: confirmed 1 suspect is deceased, 2 victims are deceased, 1 victim is critically injured, 1 victim has non life threatening injuries. The 2 individuals who were unaccounted for were located. #BCoPD & BCoFD are still searching the scene for possible additional victims. ^DM
— Baltimore County Police Department (@BaltCoPolice) May 8, 2021
The fire was being fed by natural gas, and firefighters were still working to control the gas leak by Saturday afternoon, authorities said. A utility company was working to shut off the natural gas to the home.
“We don’t have any preliminary information whatsoever on the exact origin or cause [of the fire],” Rostkowski said. “That’s part of the ongoing investigation.”
The call for the active shooter and fire came in at the same time, and authorities are investigating if the two incidents are related, authorities said.
“We have this fire that happened, we also have this suspect who was armed,” Stewart said. “How they’re all related, it’s really too early to tell at this point.”
Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski said he was at the scene of the “horrific incident” Saturday morning and will make “all possible resources” available to those impacted.
“This rapidly evolving situation has required a multi-agency response and will take time to fully investigate,” he said on Twitter. “Today, we pray for the injured victims and the families who have lost loved ones.”
