Seven law enforcement officers killed, one fatally, in South Carolina, according to one official

ATLANTA – Seven police officers were killed – at least one mortally – by an extraordinary barrage of fire after the authorities tried to execute a search warrant in South Carolina on Wednesday, officials said in a statement. residential subdivision in tragic battlefield.

The episode, punctuated by evacuations in a tactical vehicle and a long confrontation between a barricaded suspect and the authorities, was part of the shootings of the American police who caused the biggest bloodbath in recent years.

"They thought it was a random search warrant," said Wednesday evening Sheriff Kenney Boone of Florence County, SC, during a press conference, while he and D & # 39; other local officials seemed clueless. "But when they arrived, the shots started."

Although many details about the episode – including the reason for the warrant, the exact sequence of the fatal encounter and the identity of the suspect and wounded officers – are unclear on Wednesday night, local authorities have depicts an afternoon of chaos in the Vintage. Place subdivision in Florence, a city of about 37,000 inhabitants located northeast of South Carolina.

Major Mike Nunn, of the sheriff's office, said the deputies had tried to execute a warrant for arrest around 4 pm, but that a suspect had opened fire, injuring three people. Other law enforcement officers responded, including four city police officers who were quickly injured. The officers were finally saved from the scene in a military-style vehicle.

"The fire was fired from everywhere," said the sheriff. "The way the suspect was positioned, his view of the fire was several hundred meters. He had an advantage. "

The authorities did not immediately identify the types of weapons used during the exchange, but said that all the injured policemen had been shot and wounded.

The suspect was in custody Wednesday evening and the surviving officers and NCOs were being treated in a hospital.

Chief Allen Heidler of the Florence Police Department said he knew the deceased policeman – "the bravest policeman I've known" – for about 30 years.

Local officials said the suspect acted alone and the situation was over, alleviating concerns in a community where emergency management officials had warned just before 5pm. that there was "an ongoing active shooting incident" and told people to stay away from the area.

A little more than an hour later, around 18 hours, the agency said the situation was "over and the suspect is in custody."

Elected officials, including Governor Henry McMaster, quickly expressed their condolences for this episode, the latest blow to a region already in shock from Hurricane Florence.

"It's just devastating news from Florence," McMaster wrote. "The selfless acts of bravery of the men and women of the forces of order are real, just as the power of prayer is real."

In an article on Twitter, President Trump said that he was "always grateful for what our law enforcement officers are doing 24/7/365."

It is somewhat unusual, although not quite uncommon, for many officers to be injured on one occasion.

In July 2016, five Dallas officers were transferred fatally injured when they were ambushed. A few days later, six police officers were shot dead, three of them fatally, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and in November of that year two other officers were ambushed in Des Moines.