Originally published on September 18, 2013
A man opened fire at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. on Monday (September 16) in a shooting spree that saw 13 people killed, including the gunman.
The shooter was identified as Aaron Alexis, 34, a U.S. military veteran from Forth Worth, Texas and Navy contractor who was discharged from the Navy Reserve in 2011 over cases of misconduct, according to a Navy official.
Reuters reports: "[Alexis] was killed in one of several gun battles with police after he entered the Naval Sea Systems Command headquarters about 8:20 a.m. (1220 GMT) and started picking off victims in a cafeteria from a fourth-floor atrium, witnesses said."
The report continues:
That set off pandemonium, with fire alarms sounding and security officers yelling at people to leave the building. Hundreds fled, some scrambling over walls to escape the gunfire. A loudspeaker announcement ordered those who remained to stay in their offices.
The motive remained unknown. He allegedly carried a shotgun into the Building 197, the headquarters for Naval Sea Systems Command.
Eight people were injured including three who were shot, Washington Mayor Vincent Gray said. Those killed were aged 46 to 73, he said. Investigations continued into the circumstances of their deaths.
Investigators earlier were pursuing a possible second gunman but later said there were no suspects beyond Alexis. The incident has raised questions about security at the Washington Navy Yard, about a mile (1.6 km) south of the U.S. Capitol and 3 miles (5 km) from the White House.
Alexis, a contract employee, had legitimate access to the Navy Yard and used a valid pass, the FBI said. Authorities did not address how he could have sneaked weapons onto the base.
Police patrol officers and active shooter teams put an end to the rampage, shooting Alexis dead. Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier said the gun battles produced acts of heroism she could not yet reveal.
"Everybody was panicking and trying to decide which way to get out. A few of us just ran out the side exit," Patricia Ward, who works at the Navy Yard, told reporters.
Security guards told people to "run, run, run," Ward said.
Alexis was also arrested in Seattle in 2004 for shooting out a construction worker's car tires in an anger-fueled "blackout" triggered by perceived "disrespect," according to the Seattle Police Department.
Military personnel are generally banned from carrying weapons on military installations but most people with proper credentials are not routinely checked for firearms.
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