One of the wounded victims is a 17-month-old baby girl.
The latest report indicates there were 21 injured and five people killed in a mass shooting in the Texas cities of Odessa and Midland, on Friday afternoon (local time).
This shooting marks the second mass shooting in Texas this month, and fourth in the state in the last two years.
Local police confirmed that the shooter, a white man in his mid-30s, was killed by officers in a movie theater in Odessa.
Odessa Police Chief Mike Gerke told Time that “the incident began when the suspect was pulled over for a traffic stop by a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper about 3:15 p.m. (local time). The suspect shot the trooper and fled.”
More information about the suspect is to be released on Sunday, but the latest report from the FBI indicates that they do not yet know who he is:
It is too soon to know motive or the identity of the suspect.
— FBI El Paso (@FBIElPaso) August 31, 2019
During the shooting, the gunman reportedly switched vehicles, hijacking a Postal Service mail van, which then led local officers to believe that there was more than one active gunman.
Local businesses and hospitals went into lockdown until police confirmed that the gunman had been killed.
In the aftermath of the shooting, many public figures have issued another call for gun control:
I'm heartsick for the victims of this latest mass shooting in Odessa and Midland. We shouldn't have to live with this near daily fear and horror. We've already lost far too many to gun violence—Congress must act now. https://t.co/Hgdb7h6kpI
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) August 31, 2019
I’m heartbroken, sickened, & angry. Weeks after the horror in El Paso, another community in Texas has been terrorized by gun violence. Enough. We must end this epidemic.@DrBiden & I send our thoughts to those affected & thank our law enforcement who responded at great risk.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 1, 2019
I’m heartbroken for the families of the victims in the Odessa and Midland shooting. Our children deserve a future without multiple mass shootings in one month.
We need gun safety reform.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 1, 2019
A local woman and friend-of-the-family has started an online fundraiser for the 17-month-old girl who was wounded, stating that “She is being flown to Lubbock while we drive. Not getting to fly with her is beyond painful. Anderson is 17months old, has shrapnel in her right chest, which thank God is superficial. She has a hole through her bottom lip and tongue and her front teeth were knocked out. She is alive.
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