Last Updated Jun 25, 2018 11:48 AM EDT
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Officials say a firefighter has died, and another firefighter and a civilian have been wounded during a shooting at a Southern California retirement home. The shooting happened Monday after firefighters responded to a pre-dawn alarm at an 11-story tower in Long Beach, south of Los Angeles. A person of interest is in custody, police say.
Long Beach Fire Department Chief Mike DuRee says firefighters responding to the report of an explosion and a smell of gas at the retirement home found some windows blown out and a fire, which they then extinguished. Soon after they were fired upon.
The three victims were taken to the hospital for treatment. One of the firefighters died about four hours after the shooting, Duree said.
DuRee said the deceased 45-year-old man was a 17-year veteran of the department and leaves behind a wife and two children.
“It’s a tough day,” Duree said at a press conference Monday, wiping away tears.
The civilian is in critical condition and was undergoing surgery, DuRee said. It’s not known whether the victim is a resident of the facility.
The second firefighter is expected to make a full recovery, Duree said.
Police Sgt. Brad Johnson says a man believed responsible for the shooting is a resident of the facility and was taken into custody. Long Beach police chief Robert Luna says a motive remains under investigation, but an ambush is “definitely on the table.”
“That’s the environment we’re working in today as police and firefighters,” Luna said.
A resident told CBS Los Angeles he saw an explosion outside of a sliding glass door. He said he saw one of his neighbors had been shot.
Another resident told the station that as he led a group of people out of the building, he saw a man sitting on the stairs between the third and second floor with a gun in his hand, looking at the gun. The group went back up and found another way out before telling police what they saw.
The resident said he was familiar with the man as a regular bicyclist in the area, but did not know his name.
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