Authorities Confirm Multiple Victims After Shooting Reported at Maryland Plant

Police caution tape blocks the entrance to a shooting crime scene in a file photo Jeff Dean/AFP via Getty Images

Officials in Maryland confirmed a shooting with several victims at a plant in Washington County on Thursday afternoon.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said at a news conference that at least three people died in the incident.

Deputies responded to the active shooting scene at Columbia Machine Inc. in Smithsburg at around 2:30 p.m. ET, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson in a comment to The Associated Press.

The suspect was shot and injured in a confrontation with a state trooper, said the sheriff’s office. Hogan said he doesn’t know the condition of the gunman, who hasn’t yet been identified.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) office in Baltimore wrote on Twitter that its special agents are assisting deputies in the investigation.

“I have been briefed on it but it’s an ongoing situation. We don’t have all of the facts and I’m not sure they’re ready to put out all of the facts without notifying next of kin,” Hogan said in the news conference.

“This is a county and state agency investigation. My thoughts and prayers go out to all those involved. We certainly wish the best to all those in our small community that are involved in this situation,” Smithsburg Mayor Donald Souders said in a statement

“I’m closely monitoring the shooting in Smithsburg, and my office has reached out to local officials to learn more and to offer our support,” wrote Sen. Chris Van Vollen (D-Md.) on Twitter.

Authorities have not released any more details, including what led up to the shooting

Smithsburg is in a rural area near the Maryland-Pennsylvania border, located several miles from Hagerstown, Maryland.