1 dead after ‘active shooter’ incident at Arkansas hospital; suspect in custody

One person was dead and another in custody after what authorities called an “active shooter” incident at a hospital in Sherwood, Arkansas.

Authorities did not identify the victim or the “person of interest,” saying only that the latter had been picked up by Little Rock police at a gas station, The Associated Press reported.

Federal and local authorities responded to a shooting incident at CHI St. Vincent North hospital at around 10 a.m. Wednesday, confirming an active shooter situation about an hour later.

Details were scant as area streets remained closed and at least parts of the hospital were evacuated. The shooting occurred on the hospital’s fourth floor, employees who had been inside told KTHV.

“Police activity at SVI North. Please avoid the area!” the Sherwood Police Department tweeted between 10 and 11 a.m. Wednesday, and a few minutes later, “We can confirm an active shooter at SVI. No other information will be released at this time.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) New Orleans Field Division, which covers Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, said they were on the scene as well. Hospital employees gathered in a nearby store’s parking lot, reuniting with colleagues and loved ones who had flocked there at the news.

“Special agents are responding to reports of a shooting incident at St. Vincent Hospital in Sherwood, AR,” the federal agency tweeted.

CHI St. Vincent North has been in operation since 1999, its website says. More than 200 physicians and staff work there. Sherwood is a 33,000-population city about 10 miles northeast of Little Rock.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

With News Wire Services