Shooting at Mall in Omaha

[commonsense]

There was a shooting at the Von Maur store Customer Service department. A UPC pastors wife works there and witnessed the shooting. Her husband was just interviewed on the Breaking news on TV. She was still inside. The mall was on lock down.

Please pray for all involved in this situation.

[Emma Bontrager]

Originally Posted by commonsense

There was a shooting at the Von Maur store Customer Service department. A UPC pastors wife works there and witnessed the shooting. Her husband was just interviewed on the Breaking news on TV. She was still inside. The mall was on lock down.

Please pray for all involved in this situation.

Some people will only care that he was interviewed on TV. I will watch this interview through the neighbors window.

[rgcraig]

2 Confirmed Dead In Omaha Mall Shooting
Witness Says 35-40 Shots Fired

POSTED: 12:21 pm PST December 5, 2007
UPDATED: 2:04 pm PST December 5, 2007

NBC11.com

OMAHA, Neb. -- Hospital officials say that at least two people are dead and four injured following a mall shooting in Omaha, Neb.

Omaha TV station KETV, in reportintg the deaths, said the Westroads Mall is locked down and a manhunt is underway for a suspected gunman. First responders can be seen escorting people from the building. Its surrounding parking lots are filled with first response vehicles, evacuated shoppers and onlookers.

Jennifer Kramer, a witness, told KETV that she heard 35 to 40 shots as she was taking cover inside the mall. Another witness, who was shopping with Kramer, said she "just kept hoping God would spare us."

It was unclear whether the shooter was still inside the mall or whether other people were wounded. Two people were seen being removed on stretchers, and rescue workers were taking more stretchers inside the building.

Keith Fidler, a Von Maur store employee, told The Associated Press he heard a burst of five to six shots followed by 15 to 20 more shots. Fidler said he huddled in the corner of the men's clothing department with about a dozen other employees until police yelled to get out of the store.

Fidler said he did not see the shooting but saw a person lying still by an elevator as he was leaving the store.

A woman who answered the phone at an Old Navy store said 20 to 30 customers were huddled with employees in a back storeroom.

"All we know was people were running and screaming down the hallway by Von Maur saying there was a shooting, and then they locked us down," said the woman, who said her name was Heidi.

Another witness told KETV that she was locked inside the mall. She said she was doing Christmas shopping at a store called Younkers, when an announcement was made that no one would be allowed to leave.

Just before 2 p.m., she said, another announcement was made that shoppers could leave but would not be allowed back in.

Another Westroads shopper told KETV that she heard three pops. She said a Bath and Body Works store manager approached her and told her to get out of the mall hallway as there was a situation, and a shooter had not been located.

The Westwood Mall has more than 135 stores and restaurants, according to the Web site for General Growth Properties, the manager of the mall. It gets 14.5 million visitors every year, according to the Web site.

President George W. Bush was in Omaha on Wednesday for a fundraiser, but left about an hour before the shooting.
Distributed by Internet Broadcasting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[rgcraig]

This just game via email our local news:

Nine dead in Omaha mall shooting, including gunman
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - A man with a rifle opened fire at a busy shopping mall Wednesday, killing eight people before taking his own life, police said. Five more people were wounded, two critically.

Shoppers and employees ran screaming through the mall and barricaded themselves in dressing rooms after hearing gunfire. The gunman was found dead on the third floor of the Von Maur department store.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[Pragmatist]

Praying for the Toneys.

[dizzyde]

This stuff always makes my stomach hurt, it is so horrible. So many lives will forever be scarred by this event.

The people who lose family members, the people who are hurt and survive, the people who witness it, and the family and friends of the person who did it. All forever changed in a matter of moments.

You have to wonder what kind of torment a person has to be going through to do something like this.

My prayers go out to all involved.

[OneAccord]

We mourn those that died. We pray for the injured and families affected by thie horrible tragedy.

Then we ask, "How Long, O Lord..."

[commonsense]

Interview with the pastor >

http://www.ketv.com/video/14784513/i...tml?source=CNN

[Pragmatist]

Bump

[rgcraig]

Just watched the news and showed a picture of the guy - - so sad that someone can be that lonely and unhappy and think going on "big" is the right thing to do.