ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. — A man was shot and killed after bringing a handgun into the emergency room of Sentara Albemarle Hospital Tuesday morning, according to the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office.
Teresa Watson, president of the medical center, recounts the heroics of her staff.
“Even though this person had her held in a room with a gun on her, the minute he was shot, she was delivering aid to that individual. If it wasn't for the actions of our heroic security officer leading the potential gunman away from the clinical staff and other visitors, it could have been a much worse outcome," said Watson.
Full press conference: Officials say guard was unarmed when he was assaulted by suspect
Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten says law enforcement arrived to a man with a gun in the emergency department.
“The suspect pointed the handgun at law enforcement. The suspect was struck with gunfire from law enforcement and was able to receive immediate medical care by ER staff. The suspect was pronounced deceased at the scene by medical personnel," said Wooten.
The North Carolina Hospital Violence Protection Act states that any hospital with an emergency department needs a law enforcement officer present, that wasn’t the case here. But Watson said discussions have been had, but the resources haven’t been here.”
Watch: Raw footage from scene of Sentara hospital
“Just because there's legislation that's passed to say you have to have those resources, then you've got to work with the community, and we're currently, and have been in discussions since fall of last year, to be able to provide that level of security," said Watson.
Watson shares that this situation is pushing the medical center to be more equipped in the future.
“Our weapons detection system that will be in place at the new hospital. Quite honestly, it probably will be escalated to be here. Will there be armed officers on the campus in the future? Yes," said Watson.
At this point the suspect’s name has not been released, and we also are not sure if he fired his weapon or not. We know the unarmed security officer was struck by the man’s gun on his head and taken into surgery Tuesday morning.
Around 1:18 a.m., members of the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office and the Elizabeth City Police Department arrived on the scene after receiving the initial report of a handgun on hospital grounds.
Based off of initial gatherings, the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office says the suspect entered the emergency department and pointed the handgun at hospital staff. The suspect then hit a security guard — who hospital officials later confirmed was unarmed — in the head with his gun before law enforcement arrived.
Deputies then located the suspect in an emergency room triage area, according to the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office. The release says after the suspect pointed his gun at the deputies, three deputies with the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office fired at the suspect, shooting and killing him.
The three deputies are now on administrative leave with pay pending an investigation, which is standard protocol. No injuries were reported for law enforcement personnel.
The injured security guard is receiving treatment at the emergency room. During a press conference later Tuesday morning, President of Sentara Albemarle Medical Center Teresa Watson said the guard, a Navy veteran, was undergoing surgery. She said he had only been working at the hospital for a month.
Officials declined to share details on the suspect during the conference, citing the ongoing investigation. They also did not share whether or not the suspect ever fired his gun.
The emergency department is continuing to see patients.
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation will conduct an investigation of this incident.
