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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – State Police are taking over the investigation and the FBI has arrived to assist law enforcement and SWAT teams at the scene of what the Pittsburgh Police Department has called an “active shooting situation” in Garfield.
The situation takes place in the 4800 block of Broad Street and N. Mathilda Street, according to Pittsburgh Public Safety.
Sources tell KDKA’s Andy Sheehan that sheriff’s deputies were on the scene to serve an eviction notice and as they approached the property, the resident began to open fire, which escalated into a shootout.
A spokesman for the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office said a sergeant in charge on the scene was injured while dodging the incoming gunfire. He was not seriously injured and is expected to be fine, officials said.
According to Pittsburgh Public Safety, officers have been evacuating people from their homes in the 4800 block of Broad Street. They ask if anyone is around. Take shelter, call 9-1-1 and state your address and location.
It is believed that “hundreds of bullets” were fired. When the Pittsburgh Police Department SWAT team arrived at the scene, the suspect is believed to have shot down two police drones.
The public is asked to avoid this area, as it has been described as an “extremely active situation where shooting continues.”
“The first officers on the scene arrived very quickly and now the incident is constantly evolving as we just heard about 30 to 40 gunshots going back and forth,” said state police trooper Rocco Gagliardi. “So we are actively working with all emergency services on site to make sure we can end this in the safest way possible.”
a woman barricaded in her basement before she was evacuated, said her home was hit by gunfire.
“Trying to get to the basement was almost excruciating,” she said. “Shots rang out everywhere. Finally I reached the basement and was able to get to a safe place. Shots rang out everywhere.”
“Shots came through the living room window, I have holes in the bathroom, glass is broken everywhere,” she added.
Her husband was at work when he found his wife barricaded at home alone.
“Finally I contacted her. She’s panicked in the basement, screaming and crying,” he said. “The first thing I had to do was go home, you know what I mean? So I come here and everything is shut down and I hear gunshots and everything. It’s just something I’ve never heard of or imagined in this neighborhood.”
The situation occurs near St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery and UPMC Children’s Hospital. UPMC Children’s Hospital posted an update on social media about this incident.
A witness visiting the area said he was terrified when shots rang out.
“In the beginning we only heard the police,” says witness Chris Wilkinson, who is visiting family in the area. “They banged on the door where the shooting took place. They banged on it and told him they were there. And after a few minutes of doing that, they started kicking in the door, but after a few tries, they could say ‘I have didn’t do it. Then they took a sledgehammer and broke down the door, and then shots started to be fired. I’ve been very nervous and it’s really sad what’s happening. You think you can be safe here, but you can ‘ not with what’s happening.”
Pittsburgh Public Safety said the the State Police Troop B Major Case Team will take over the investigation of the situation once it has been completed on site.
Stay tuned to KDKA-TV and KDKA.com for updates on this developing story as they become available.
Andy Sheehan
