A gunman identified as a doctor opened fire inside the Bronx-Lebanon Hospital in New York City on Friday, killing a woman and wounding several people before killing himself, according to law enforcement officials.
The shooter was identified as Dr. Henry Bello, a former doctor at the hospital, two law enforcement officials told CNN.
The gunman, who was wearing a white lab coat and carrying ID, shot himself on the 16th floor, according to law enforcement officials. The body of a woman who was shot was found near the body of the dead suspect, officials tell CNN.
Five other people were wounded in the shooting, and three of those are in serious condition from gunshot wounds, a law enforcement source told CNN.
The FBI of New York said there was no nexus to terrorism at this time.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio was briefed on the unfolding situation, according to a tweet from the mayor’s office.
The Bronx-Lebanon Hospital in the Bronx borough is among the largest providers of outpatient services in New York.
Video images from the scene showed hospital employees and others coming out of the hospital’s main entrance, their hands in the air, and crossing the street toward awaiting police officers.
Scenes from the hospital
Krystal Rivera, a 23-year-old patient at the hospital, said she was with her hospital roommate, a visitor and a nurse from the floor when they heard gunshots.
“I barricaded the door with an IV machine, two chairs and my whole bed,” Rivera said.
The visitor looked out and saw a man wearing a green top and a white lab coat and saw that he had a rifle, she said.
In an Instagram video, patient Francisco Bodon said he was stranded in a hot hospital room.
“Here in the room three nurses are hiding in the bathroom. We haven’t been able to leave … We have a little water at least. I’m hiding here with an injured hand and I had leg surgery. The nurses are hiding and they’re telling me to keep my voice down. When will this end?”
“Why do people do these stupid things? People don’t think,” Bodon said. “There is no air conditioning. It’s hot. I hope they got him.”
Hospitals have been the site of active shooting situations in recent years.
In January 2015, a patient’s family member shot and killed cardiac surgeon Michael Davidson before the shooter killed himself at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
And in Florida last July, a man entered a patient’s room and opened fire, killing an elderly female patient and a female hospital worker, police said. A suspect was taken into custody.
