Shooter kills one, wounds 7 at Tennessee church
Story highlights
- The gunman suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said
- The victims and gunman have been taken to area hospitals
(CNN)A
gunman opened fire at a church in Antioch, Tennessee, on Sunday,
killing one person and wounding six others, according to a spokesman for
the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. An eighth victim was
"pistol whipped," police said.
"This
is a mass casualty situation," the Nashville Fire Department said in a
tweet. "All of the wounded have been transported to area hospitals. The
majority are older adults."
The
shooting occurred at the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch, a
neighborhood in Davidson County governed by Nashville.
The MNPD said it received the first call of multiple shots fired at 11:15 a.m. CT.
The gunman arrived at the
church's parking lot as a prayer service was letting out, said Don
Aaron, spokesman for the police department.
The
gunman, described by police as a man in his mid-20s, shot and killed a
woman who was walking to her car before entering the church, Aaron said.
He
then fired "multiple rounds" at people in the building, Aaron said. Six
people were wounded by gunfire and another was pistol whipped, he
added.
One
parishioner who witnessed the shooting inside the church "ran up and
confronted" the gunman, Aaron said. During a struggle, the gunman
mistakenly shot himself, Aaron said.
The
suspect is being treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center under
police guard. "It is our belief that the gunman's condition is not
life-threatening," Aaron said.
All of the victims have been taken to area hospitals, he added.
Police
said the investigation into the shooting is ongoing. Agents from the
FBI's Memphis field office are on the scene providing assistance to
local law enforcement, an FBI spokesperson told CNN.
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