By: MWC News
Source: MWC News
Twelve people have been killed and others injured in a shooting at the US Navy Yard in Washington, the city’s mayor and police chief have said.
Police were searching the Navy complex to track down the gunmen involved in the attack on Monday morning.
Police chief Cathy Lanier said one shooter had been killed and that two other suspects – a white and a black male – were still at large.
She said the suspects were not believed to be military personnel but were wearing uniforms.
The Navy said at least three shots were fired at 8:20 am (13:20 GMT) in the headquarters building of the Naval Sea Systems Command, where about 3,000 people work.
‘Fortress’
The complex is located right next to residential buildings, businesses and schools, she added.
Todd Brundidge, an executive assistant with Navy Sea Systems Command, said he and other co-workers encountered a gunman in a hallway of their building on the third floor. The gunman was wearing all blue, he said.
“He just turned and started firing,” Brundidge said.
Flights at Reagan National Airport were temporarily halted to enable helicopters to transfer injured to hospital.
Janis Orlowski, a hospital spokeswoman at Medstar Washington Medical Center, said the hospital was treating two civilians and one police officer who were in critical condition with gunshot wounds.
She said the hospital expected more victims to arrive.
President Barack Obama pledged to do everything possible to make sure whoever was responsible for the attack was held responsible.
He said the victims were “courageous Americans” who knew about the risks of serving overseas, but would not have expected such “unimaginable violence” at home.
Naval Sea Systems Command builds, buys and maintains the Navy’s ships and submarines and their combat systems.
It is the largest of the Navy’s five system commands and accounts for a quarter of the Navy’s entire budget.
The Navy Yard complex is located 1.6km south of the US Capitol. It includes a museum and the residence of the chief of naval operations, among other buildings.