At least one person has been killed and four others were injured after a shooting incident in the US state of Georgia’s capital city of Atlanta, on Wednesday (May 3), said the Atlanta Police Department. This comes after the police department had issued a “shelter in place” alert and said they are investigating an active shooter in the Midtown Atlanta’s Northside Hospital Medical, area of 1110 W Peachtree St NW.
The shelter-in-place order has since been lifted in Midtown Atlanta, said the police hours after the incident was first reported. “Three have been transported to the hospital for treatment and a fourth has been pronounced deceased on scene. Officers are actively searching for the suspect and any other victims,” said the local police, adding that they have not heard any additional shots.
The police department has also released images of the suspect and said, “based on our preliminary investigation, these are photos believed to be of the active shooter. Anyone with any information on this person’s whereabouts is asked to call 911.” They added, “The suspect is believed to be armed and dangerous and should not be approached.”
The suspect has been identified as Deion Patterson (24) and as of 2:46 pm is “still at large,” said the police in an update. According to an alert, he has been described as a Black male wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt, black pants and brown shoes.
Images and videos of the site where the incident took place show multiple police and other emergency vehicles. Based on the initial investigation police have said that the shooting occurred after a man became enraged during a trip to the medical facility. According to Grady Memorial Hospital, among those injured, three were in critical condition and one was in stable condition, reported CBS News.
As of 1:30 pm (local time), the officers are actively searching for the suspect and any other victims, said the police. Atlanta Public Schools said several schools in the area would operate on external lockdown for the rest of the day “out of an abundance of caution.”
Meanwhile, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said that he is in “close contact” with the APD and that those in the area should “shelter in place”.
Police cordoned blocks of streets in Midtown, impeding the flow of traffic in the district. According to media reports, an hour after the gunfire, a SWAT team gathered near the High Art Museum, which is around one kilometre away from the shooting scene.
Meanwhile, the Northside Hospital also took to Twitter and said they are “cooperating with law enforcement” after the shooting and urged everyone to “shelter in place and follow instructions from law enforcement on the scene.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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