At Least Nine People Have Been Injured In Planned Parenthood Shootout, Suspect Is Still Armed And At Large [UPDATE]

A terrifying situation is unfolding in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where police are currently actively engaged in a shootout with a gunman who barricaded himself in a Planned Parenthood and opened fire on people near the clinic. The police arrived at the scene after a 911 call from the facility and are concerned that the shooter might have taken one of the bullet-proof vests inside (used by employees in such situations) for himself.

The New York Times reports that police are trying to do everything they can to contain the shooter, but he is currently still at large. Furthermore, the latest update from the Colorado Springs Gazette confirms that police have asked for a sniper to be installed at the scene. There’s also the fear that a second gunman may be on the loose as well.

https://twitter.com/bystephenhobbs/status/670351768027422720

Lieutenant Catherine Buckley told CNN the following only a short time ago:

“We don’t have the suspect yet and we do consider this still an active situation,” Buckley told reporters earlier Friday. There could be hostages and there could be an additional shooter at large, she said.

Police don’t know whether the Planned Parenthood was the intended target of the attack but are doing what they can to minimize damage. Local hospitals report that at least 9 people have been brought in with injuries and people around the Planned Parenthood’s location have been asked to lock their doors and stay inside. Some civilians, however, have already spoken to media outlets to relate their experience of what’s been happening:

From The New York Times:

Denise Speller, a manager at a Supercuts salon near the shooting scene, said she saw police cars screaming through the small shopping center and pull up by a nearby Chase bank as gunshots echoed across the parking lot. She said she saw one officer positioned by his cruiser apparently struck by a bullet.

“We just saw him go down,” Ms. Speller said in a telephone interview.

The latest report from the Colorado Springs Police Department asks anyone near the location to call 211 to let their families know they are safe but are alerting citizens that this is still an ongoing situation.

No specific information has been given about the suspects, although police have confirmed that he was “described as white man in a trench coat with an assault rifle.”

This is the latest update from Planned Parenthood officials, via CNN:

“We don’t yet know the full circumstances and motives behind this criminal action, and we don’t yet know if Planned Parenthood was in fact the target of this attack,” Vicki Cowart, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, said in a written statement. “We share the concerns of many Americans that extremists are creating a poisonous environment that feeds domestic terrorism in this country. We will never back away from providing care in a safe, supportive environment that millions of people rely on and trust.”

Update: 7:27pm The suspect is now in police custody.

Update: 8:30pm. Two people have died as a result of the shootout. One of them has been confirmed as a police officer.

[protected-iframe id=”d3a99ad64044cf2221e04dda8e7b9616-60970621-16071739″ info=”https://katch.me/embed/v/b887dc11-94b0-37c5-8b35-9e922ee6a2c0?sync=1″ width=”640″ height=”569″ frameborder=”0″ scrolling=”no” allowfullscreen=””]