Idaho shooting: two dead after firefighters ambushed by gunman while responding to fire
Two firefighters were killed after they were ambushed by sniper fire while responding to a blaze in a northern Idaho mountain community, as crews endured a barrage of gunfire over several hours that the governor called a 'heinous' assault.
A shelter-in-place order was lifted on Sunday night after a tactical response team discovered the body of a man with a firearm nearby, the Kootenai County sheriff's office said.
Sheriff Bob Norris said officials didn't know if anyone else was shot.
The sheriff said the shooter had used high-powered sporting rifles to fire rapidly at first responders, with law enforcement initially unsure of the number of perpetrators involved. Law enforcement was investigating whether the fire could have been intentionally set in order to lure first responders to the scene.
The Department of Homeland Security secretary, Kristi Noem, has been briefed on the Idaho shooting, ABC News reported.
The state's governor, Brad Little, said 'multiple heroic firefighters' were attacked while responding to the fire.
'This is a heinous direct assault on our brave firefighters,' he wrote on Facebook. 'I ask all Idahoans to pray for them and their families as we wait to learn more.'
A large number of law enforcement vehicles flooded the area, including US marshals, according to a photograph posted on social media by the news director of the local broadcaster KXLY.
The same outlet reported that hundreds of law enforcement and fire personnel had established a command post in Cherry Hill dog park.
The sheriff's office in neighbouring Soshone County said on Facebook that authorities were 'dealing with an active shooter situation where the shooter is still at large'.
The fire was still active, Norris said. 'It's going to keep burning. Can't put any resources on it right now.'
The FBI responded to the scene with technical teams and tactical support, deputy director Dan Bongino said.
'It remains an active, and very dangerous scene,' he wrote in a post on X.
Coeur d'Alene is a city of 55,000 residents near the border with Washington. Canfield Mountain is a popular hiking and biking area on the outskirts of the northern Idaho city, covered with trees and heavy brush and crisscrossed with trails.
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