UPDATE: 9/1/19
You can listen to live dispatch audio from Midland, Texas police here. The dispatch audio for Odessa fire can be found here. The caption with the Midland police dispatch audio reads, “Active Shooter incident reported on Interstate 20. Multiple victims reported on the freeway. Suspect, a white man is currently mobile and search underway.”
This is as the shooting was underway.
THE SHOOTING STARTED OVER A TRAFFIC STOP
After the stop, he drove around, shot people, stole a mail truck and shot others. He was killed. Three officers were struck. There are 21 shooting victims and 5 deceased.
The Midland, Texas, Police Department said a suspected active shooter has been shot and killed at a Cinergy movie theater in the Odessa-Midland area in West Texas on Saturday. There were five people killed and 21 shooting victims, Odessa Police Chief Michael Gerke said.
The suspect is a white male in his 30s, Gerke said. He added that the incident began at a traffic stop. The suspect shot the trooper and then fled and eventually stole a mail truck.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, officers attempted to stop the suspect at around 4:13 p.m. ET. “Prior to the vehicle coming to a complete stop, the male driver (and only occupant in the vehicle) pointed a rifle toward the rear window of his car and fired several shots toward the DPS patrol unit. The patrol unit was occupied by two Troopers, and one was hit by the gunfire,” the department noted.
The agency added that the trooper who was shot in the patrol vehicle was in stable condition. Two other officers who were shot were also in stable condition.
The Midland Police Department posted on Facebook around 6:30 p.m. ET that “there is no active shooter at this time” but Gerke encouraged residents to stay indoors.
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Russell Tippin, CEO of Permian Regional Medical Center in Midland, said they treated 13 patients. Tippin said one patient died, seven are in critical condition and two are in serious condition. Two people were treated and released and another was transferred to a pediatric facility. Eight patients went through surgery.
CNN reported: Of the three injured law enforcement officers, one was a trooper from the Department of Public Safety and the other two from Midland and Odessa police departments. The trooper is in serious condition and the officers are in stable condition.
Police have not released details on those killed or injured and the US Postal Service declined to comment on the condition of the mail carrier whose truck was stolen. The Ector County school district in Odessa said one of its students was among those killed.
A 17-month-old was was shot and airlifted to University Medical Center in Lubbock, where she was in satisfactory condition, hospital officials said.
Updated frequently
Multiple people have been shot in West Texas after at least one suspect hijacked a U.S. mail carrier truck and started to fire indiscriminately, Odessa police say, according to NBC NY.
Odessa police said one person “hijacked” a U.S. Postal Service truck, while Midland police said they were searching for a second vehicle — a small gold or white Toyota truck.
Update: Police said that there was one suspect. The suspect was a white male in his mid 30’s. The suspect has been shot and killed. He was shooting at people at random from the truck.
“MPD believes the suspect traveled to Home Depot and switched vehicles to a stolen mail van and a small white Toyota truck,” 12News Now reported. [Update: Early reports said it was at Home Depot, recent reports say it was at an Odessa movie theater. It is now reported that the shooter was riding around shooting at people. One report says it was over a traffic stop.]
CBSN reports that Texas state trooper has been shot, and two other officers were shot, they have been hospitalized, condition unknown. At least five people are is dead.
UPDATED WITH WITNESS VIDEOS
This is the exact moment when – while they were reporting LIVE ON AIR – the team at @CBS7News was evacuated due to a threat of an active shooter in the mall.
They kept broadcasting via audio from the parking lot.#Odessashooting #TexasShooting #Odessa pic.twitter.com/oerxMLlkoO
— Muhammad Lila (@MuhammadLila) August 31, 2019
Omg.. this is heartbreaking.. #Odessa Texas #ActiveShooter pic.twitter.com/RppyHZo5zJ
— Gnome Army (@ryan_itsyaboi) August 31, 2019
God bless our brave police officers! #texasshooting pic.twitter.com/BKwURWz8w0
— That Trump Guy 🇺🇸 (@ThatTrumpGuy) September 1, 2019
Here's a video from the shooting in Odessa, Texas. Video courtesy of Alex Woods on Facebook. pic.twitter.com/iwF31o5MMy
— Chad ➐ (@ChadBlue_) August 31, 2019
While you’re watching football, here’s what’s on the TV in Midland-Odessa. pic.twitter.com/yxbZNmkI9k
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) August 31, 2019
Eyewitness video shows police responding to shooting victims along interstate near Midland/Odessa where active shooting took place on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/Mc7sEm2Esm
— Matthew Keys (@MatthewKeysLive) August 31, 2019
BREAKING: Large police presence after reports of an active shooter in Odessa, Texas. pic.twitter.com/b5LfVBqV8N
— Breaking News Global (@BreakingNAlerts) August 31, 2019
At least one person is dead and 10 injured in ongoing shootings near Midland and Odessa, Texas, police say https://t.co/anxUjCEUh9 pic.twitter.com/nzA128TNJr
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) August 31, 2019
Later reports indicate that the shooter was shot and killed.
UPDATE: The City of Midland tells CBS7 that a suspect has been taken into custody at the Cinergy of Midland.
Our reporter at the scene says that people are walking out of the theater and heading to their cars. https://t.co/MvA8SZt5cw
— CBS7 (@CBS7News) August 31, 2019
