Armed with rifle, gunman fires 50-100 shots in Virginia
Virginia: In a shocking incident, a gunman opened fire on Republican members of the US Congress during a baseball practice near Washington on Wednesday, injuring several people including senior Republican leader Steve Scalise.
The gunman was later taken into custody, police and witnesses said.
Talking to reporters, city Police Chief Michael Brown said, “Five people were transported medically from the scene” in Alexandria. Two of the wounded were Capitol Hill police who were at the scene, witnesses said.
Police said the shooting suspect was in custody and “not a threat.”
Scalise`s office said he was in stable condition and undergoing surgery. President Donald Trump said in a tweet that Scalise was “badly injured but will fully recover”.
In a statement earlier, Trump described himself as “deeply saddened by this tragedy,” saying his “thoughts and prayers are with the members of Congress, their staffs, Capitol Police, first responders and all others affected.”
Scalise, a representative from Louisiana, is the House of Representatives Majority Whip, making him the third-highest ranked member of the Republican leadership in the House.
In a dramatic account of the shooting, Representative Mo Brooks of Alabama said the shooter, who appeared to be a white man, was armed with a rifle.
Brooks told CNN he saw the man only for a second, and that he was shooting from a chain link fence behind the third base position on the field.
“There must have been 50 to 100 shots fired … I hear Steve Scalise over near second base scream. He was shot,” said Brooks.
Brooks described chaotic scenes after Scalise was shot.
“He was not able to move on his own power. He was dragging his body from the second base infield to the outfield to get away from the shooter while all this firing was going on,” Brooks said.
Brooks said he took off his belt and used it as a tourniquet to stop the bleeding on a staffer who was shot in the leg.
“One of our security detail was shooting back, but it was our pistol versus the shooter`s rifle,” Brooks said. “The only weapon I had was a baseball bat.”
Republican Senator Jeff Flake told local ABC-TV that Scalise was shot in the left hip. Flake said the gunman was shot. Flake also told reporters that the suspect was a white man with dark hair, apparently in his 40s or 50s, wearing jeans and a blue shirt.
The Republican lawmakers were at an early morning practice ahead of an annual baseball game against Democrats that was scheduled to be played on Thursday.
Trump, a Republican, said in a statement that he and Vice President Mike Pence were monitoring developments closely.
Democrats were also practicing for this week`s game at another field at a different location, CNN reported.
Local schools were locked down.
(With Agency inputs)
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Source:Zee news
