Four dead in Fort Hood military base shooting in Texas, US

Published: 2014 April 03 02:10:14 (10379 Views)

Four people are reportedly dead after a gunman opened fire at Fort Hood military base in Texas, US.

Texas police have reported four deaths, one of whom they say is the shooter.

An anonymous US defence official claimed the gunman had died from a self-inflicted wound, according to AP.

Four patients have arrived at Scott and White Hospital with gunshot wounds to the neck, chest and abdomen and two more are expected. Their conditions range from "stable to quite critical".

President Barack Obama says he is "heartbroken" that the base - where 13 people died in a shooting in 2009 - had suffered again.

"I want to assure everyone we are going to get to the bottom of what happened," said Mr Obama.

"Any shooting is troubling. Obviously this reopens the pain of what happened at Fort Hood five years ago. We know these families; we know their incredible service to this country and the sacrifices they make.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire community and we're going to do everything we can to make sure the community at Fort Hood has what it needs to deal with the current situation and any potential aftermath.

"We're heartbroken that something like this might have happened again."

The site has been placed in lockdown. Personnel were told to take shelter and stay away from doors and windows.

The shooter was reported to be in the Medical Brigade Building.

The Texas Sheriff has sent troopers to the scene of the shooting.
The main gate at the U.S. Army post at Fort Hood, The base is the biggest in the US

Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel called the shootings a "terrible tragedy".

The base endured a shooting in 2009, which left 13 people dead and 30 injured.

Army psychiatrist Major Nidal Hasan faces the death penalty for the killing spree.

In statements to the judge the American-born Muslim suggested he believed the attack was justified as a jihad against the US military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The base is the biggest in the US, covering 340 square miles.

Sky's US correspondent Amanda Walker said: "It was 4.30pm local time this happened. It's a huge military base. Around 45,000 soldiers are based there and 9,000 civilians.

"We saw helicopters and ambulances pretty much straight away. You would expect that, and past events have heightened that security.

"We don't know how the gunman got into the base."

Source - Sky News

Tags: shooting, firearm, military,

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