The Texas First Baptist Church where the lone gunman shot worshippers. Photo credit: UPI
A lone gunman killed at least 25 worshippers in First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, a small town in southeast Texas on Sunday, local media reported, citing the county authorities.
Mysanantonio.com reported that at least 20 people may have been killed, quoting several officials at the scene.
“I would say it’s up there around 20-plus, I’m not sure,” Wilson County Commissioner Paul Pheil said of the number of deceased.
Children were also said to be part of the casualties. Twenty more were wounded, Pheil added.
Another local official who wished to remain anonymous said there are at least 25 dead and 15 wounded. Eight of the wounded were transported to Brooke Army Medical Centre and and seven others to area hospitals.
Wilson County Sheriff Joe Tackitt told The Wilson County News that the shooter has been killed. The lone gunman had begun firing after entering the church, aiming indiscriminately.
The gunman who walked into the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, about 40 miles (65 km) east of San Antonio, was “down,” Wilson County Commissioner Albert Gamez Jr. told NBC News.
Sheriff Joe Tackitt told the Wilson County News that there have been multiple injuries and fatalities, including children. It was not clear how many people may have been killed or wounded.
Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other law enforcement agencies were either on the scene or traveling there, according to reports.
