At least five people have been killed and one wounded during a shooting at a mall in the USA state of Washington, with the suspect still on the run.
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A manhunt was underway on Saturday in northwest Washington state for a gunman who entered a Burlington shopping mall with a rifle the previous evening and killed five people before disappearing under the cover of darkness, the state police force said. He was last seen walking towards Interstate 5 from the mall, and officials believe he was armed with a rifle.
Francis said “one lone shooter” remained on the loose. “We went in the back where we have a door and everything and we just stayed there until they told us to evacuate”.
“Tragedy has struck in Washington tonight”, Inslee said in a statement on Twitter.
Williams said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation does not have information to suggest that more attacks are planned in Washington.
The Washington State Patrol says three females were killed and one male critically injured Friday night at the Cascade Mall in Burlington, north of Seattle. “Stay close to friends and loved ones as we await more information and, hopefully, news of the suspect’s capture”.
“Out of nowhere I just hear somebody yell and then after that, I turn around and just look at the Macy’s and I just hear shots”, Armando Patino, who was working the T-Mobile store, told ABC affiliate KOMO.
He had earlier said that three people were dead and two people were injured. “Our prayers and condolences are with the victims and their families”, a Facebook message read. The suspect, who is believed to have acted alone, is still on the loose.
Witnesses said the 434,000 square foot mall was open and full of shoppers at the time of the shooting, many of them young people, WSJ said.
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The Cascade Mall, located in a largely rural area, is an enclosed shopping mall that opened in 1990, according to the mall’s website. Sgt. Francis said unharmed shoppers inside the mall were transported by bus to His Place church at the corner of Pease Road and Burlington Boulevard. It features J.C. Penney, TJ Maxx, and Macy’s stores, among other stores, restaurants and a movie theater. And it got very quiet.
