NORTH CODRAS, Pa. (AP) — Law enforcement was investigating Thursday after shootings in southern Pennsylvania the day before killing three officers and wounding two more.
Violence broke out in rural York County as officers followed up in a domestic investigation that began Tuesday. The police killed the shooter.
Hours after the violence, community members raised the American flag and saluteed the police and emergency vehicles formed a procession to the coroner’s office.
Governor Josh Shapiro He condemned the violence at a press conference, saying it was a tragic loss of life. Attorney General Pamela Bondy called violence against the police “a tragedy against our society.”
This was one of the most deadly days for the Pennsylvania police of this century. In 2009, three Pittsburgh officers responding to domestic obstruction were ambushed and shot dead by a man wearing bulletproof vests.
Local police stations have expressed their sincere feelings of sadness on social media. People left flowers at the headquarters of the North York Regional Police Station.
The shooting investigation covers multiple locations in York County, state police said in a statement.
The shooting exploded in an area of North Codol Township, about 115 miles (185 km) west of Philadelphia, not far from Maryland, officials said.
Dark Anderson heard “a considerable number of” shots from his home across the street from the shooting, he said. He saw the helicopter and police arrive.
The emergency response unfolded on rural roads in southern Pennsylvania. About 30 police vehicles cut off roads adjacent to barns, goat farms and soy and corn fields.
Authorities say the two injured officers were in critical but stable condition at York Hospital.
Authorities did not determine which police station he belonged to, or how he was shot dead, citing the investigation.
The families of those who were killed were saddened, but they were proud of their loved ones, Shapiro said.
Another executive in the area was I was killed In February, a man armed with a pistol and zip tie entered the hospital’s intensive care unit, taking staff members hostages, killing both the man and the police before the shootout.
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Associated Press reporter Patrick Whittle in Portland, Maine. Kimberly Crusi of Providence, Rhode Island. Michael Casey of Boston and Audrey McAvoy of Honolulu contributed to this report. Levy was reported from Dale from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia.