Nine people are dead, including two children, after a mass shooting and hours-long police standoff in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Friday evening. The suspected gunman was also found dead inside the home from what investigators believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Erie police said.
What happened on Perry Street
Police were called to the 700 block of Perry Street, near East 7th Street on Erie's east side, around 5 p.m. on Friday, October 9, after witnesses reported seeing a man firing a handgun outside a home before going inside. When officers arrived, they found two women shot dead in the street.
The gunman barricaded himself inside the residence, triggering a standoff with Erie police and the department's SWAT team. Officers used a loudspeaker to order the suspect to surrender, but the commands went unanswered, and additional gunshots were heard from inside the home during the confrontation. When tactical officers finally entered the house, they discovered more victims throughout the property — including children — and the suspected shooter dead.
Victims include children and a pregnant woman
Eight victims were killed in the rampage, according to local reports, plus the suspected gunman. Two of the dead were children. Local television station Erie News Now reported that one of the victims was pregnant at the time of the shooting. The identities of the victims and the suspected shooter had not been released as of Saturday afternoon, and investigators have not established a motive.
Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah described the scene as one of the most difficult and heartbreaking his officers have ever encountered, declining to discuss specific details out of respect for the victims. "There are no words that can adequately express the magnitude of the loss of life here," Lorah said, adding that there is no ongoing threat to the public.
Officials respond
The City of Erie and Mayor Daria Devlin released a joint statement Friday night confirming the shooter was deceased and the situation contained. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said he had spoken with Mayor Devlin and offered the administration's full support, writing that his heart breaks for the family and the entire Erie community.
The shooting is among the deadliest mass shootings in the United States this year. Investigators say they are working to establish the full circumstances of what occurred and have asked anyone with information to come forward.
Watch: KDKA-TV report: 9 killed, including 2 children, in the reported mass shooting in Erie, Pennsylvania
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