(Reuters) – Two sheriff’s deputies and at least three other people were shot dead at a home in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, authorities said on Thursday.
The deputies were shot on Wednesday after arriving at a home in the town of Boone to conduct a “welfare check” after the homeowner’s employer called to report that he failed to show up for work, Wataugh County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
They immediately faced what became a 13-hour stand-off between the gunman and law enforcement, it said.
“Upon entering the home, two Wataugh County Sheriff’s deputies received gunshot wounds from an unknown individual within the residence,” authorities said.
The deputies were identified K-9 Deputy Logan Fox, who died at the scene, and Sergeant Chris Ward, who died after being flown to Johnson City Medical Center for treatment, the sheriff said.
Other law enforcement officers who rushed to the scene were able to pull Ward from the home but the wounded Fox remained in the home throughout the ensuing standoff, local media reported.
The gunman was among five dead in the shooting incident, according to the reports. The suspect was described as a son who killed his mother and father, local media reported.
“The individual suspected of killing the two officers is also suspected of killing two civilians in the residence,” the sheriff’s statement said, noting names would not immediately be released.
The sheriff’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for information about the gunman and who else was killed aside from the deputies.
“This is an incredibly tragic situation and our thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved as well as their families and our community,” Watauga County Sheriff Len Hagaman said.
The shooting is under investigation by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
(Reporting by Barbara Goldberg in New York; Editing by Dan Grebler)
