A police chief who had been on the job for three weeks was among four people killed when a gunman opened fire at a nursing home near Columbus, Ohio.
Kirkersville Police Chief Steven Eric Disario, was fatally shot at the scene after he was called to Pine Kirk Care Center Friday morning. He later died at the hospital, the Newark Advocate reported.
Disario, 36, had been police chief for just three weeks. He was the father of six children, with another on the way, Sheriff Randy Thorp said at a news conference Friday afternoon.
Two other people were killed in the shooting, authorities confirmed. The gunman, who has not been identified, is also dead.
The shooter reportedly entered the center, which provides 24-hour skilled nursing care and rehabilitation to its patients, around 7:30 a.m. The Licking County Sheriff’s Department declined to comment on the incident, which happened in the town located about 25 miles east of Columbus.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich said he was “shocked and pained by the horrific shooting” on Twitter.
Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Robert Sellers told NBC4i that the shooter was “neutralized.” No further details were released.
Sue Keller, library aide at Kirkersville Elementary School, told HuffPost that school had been canceled for the day. “Our students have all been diverted to Watkins Middle School,” she said.
Keller couldn’t comment on the shooting beyond referring to it as “an incident here in town.” She and one other teacher remained in the school’s building following the evacuation.
This article has been updated throughout.