Fort Hood: Shooter was set to deploy overseas
LIVE COVERAGE OF BREAKING NEWS: Fort Hood shooting
AP: Army confirms 12 dead, 31 wounded in shootings at Fort Hood, Texas
Oregon Military Department tells KVAL News that two Oregon Guard members visiting the base with their families are OK. There are no Oregon National Guard training at Fort Hood at this time.
FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison says the Army major accused of the shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, was about to deploy overseas.
Hutchison says she was told about the upcoming deployment by generals based at Fort Hood. But it was unclear if he was headed to Iraq or Afghanistan and exactly when he was scheduled to leave.
Military officials in Washington say the suspected shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan was a psychiatrist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for six years before being transferred to the Texas base in July.
The soldier is accused of opening fire on the base on Thursday in a shooting that left 11 other people dead and 31 wounded. Authorities killed the gunman and apprehended two other soldiers. Those soldiers have been released.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — The U.S. Army says 12 people have been killed and 31 wounded in a shooting rampage on the Fort Hood Army base in Texas.
Lt. Gen Bob Cone said at a news conference that one shooter has been killed and two suspects were apprehended on Thursday. He says they are all U.S. soldiers.
The shooting began around 1:30 p.m. Cone says that all the casualties took place at the base's Soldier Readiness Center where soldiers who are about to be deployed or who are returning undergo medical screening.
He says the primary shooter used two handguns in the attack.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Seven people were killed and 20 wounded in a pair of shootings Thursday at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas, the Army says. An army spokesman in Washington says the base has been locked down following the shootings. Another official told The Associated Press that at least one shooter had been caught.
The FBI is sending agents to the scene.
Army spokesman Lt. Col. Nathan Banks says the first shooting began at about 1:30 p.m. at a personnel and medical processing office. The facility, called a Soldier Rating and Processing center, handles administrative details for soldiers.
Banks says two shooters were apparently involved. There was no immediate word on who they were, nor on identities of the dead.
Banks says the second incident took place at a theater on the sprawling base.
Another Army official identified that site as the Howze Theater.
That official, who requested anonymity to discuss an evolving incident, said a graduation had been scheduled for 2 p.m. at the theater.
The White House said President Barack Obama was notified of the shootings.
Earlier report
FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) - The U.S. Army has closed its massive Army base at Fort Hood, Texas, amid reports that several people have been shot and killed at the post.
The Web site of the base in central Texas has posted an alert that says, "Effective immediately Fort Hood is closed." The Web site said that units at the base have been ordered to account for all personnel.
The site says, "This is not a Drill. It is an Emergency Situation."
Several television stations in Texas say several people were both killed and wounded in the shooting. Officials at the base and in the nearby town of Killeen, Texas, have not confirmed those accounts.
Fort Hood is located halfway between Austin and Waco.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
