UNITED STATES. Tennessee: A mass shooting in the U.S. state of Tennessee has killed at least one person and wounded 12 others Thursday, authorities said.
The attack took place at a Kroger grocery in the town of Collierville on Thursday afternoon about 35 miles (56 km) east of the city of Memphis.
The shooter, who is a man, died at the scene from a suspected self-inflicted gunshot wound.
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Terrified grocery shoppers ran from the building amid gunshots fired inside, according to survivors and eyewitnesses.
“We found people hiding in freezers and in locked offices,” Collierville Police Chief Dale Lane said. “They were doing what they had been trained to do. Run, hide, fight.”
One employee was extracted from the roof of the store, Lane said.
Some of the twelve wounded have suffered “very serious injuries” he said, and one died at the scene.
“Oh no, these are gunshots,” Brignetta Dickerson, a cashier, recalled. She thought the first noise was a balloon. The shooter followed her and a group of employees and customers through the store. One coworker was shot in the head, and a customer was shot in the stomach, she said.
Multiple ambulances and helicopters were on the scene to transport the wounded to a nearby hospital.
Glenda McDonald, who works in Kroger’s flower department, told USA Today that she “just ran out the door” as soon as she heard the first gunshot.
“I left my purse, my keys, everything,” she said.
The company said the store will remain closed while the investigation continues, and employees are being offered counselling services.
“It breaks my heart to have to stand before you today,” said Lane in a news conference after the shooting. “It’s the most horrific event that’s occurred in Collierville history.”
The Kroger shooting comes six months after a similar shooting at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado, where a gunman killed 10 people including a police officer.
Tennessee was one of several states earlier this year to loosen restrictions on gun purchases. The newest rule, signed by the Republican governor, allows most adults over 21 to carry handguns without going through a state background check.
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