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Two officers shot and wounded in US state of Maryland, while attacker dies

Tuesday, 18 May 2021 11:51 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 18 May 2021 12:06 PM ]

Authorities in Charles County, Maryland., gather amid a situation with a barricaded suspect who allegedly shot two officers Monday. (Photo by WTTG)

Two police officers were shot in the Mid-Atlantic US state of Maryland on Monday while serving a warrant, local officials said in a statement.

The attacker reportedly died after he barricaded himself inside his home for hours. It was, however, not immediately clear how he died.

The incident took place in an unincorporated community of Waldorf, 23 miles south-southeast of Washington, late on Monday. Officials did not disclose what the warrant pertained to.

Maryland officers shot in 'ambush' while serving arrest warrant, suspect barricaded in home https://t.co/wOtJmAhQU2 pic.twitter.com/3ADeiNmYr9
— Fabluc (@Fabiolucv) May 18, 2021

The identities of both the officers and the shooter remain unknown. According to reports, the attacker was suffering from a mental health crisis.

Following the shooting, the wounded officers were rushed to a nearby hospital to be treated for injuries.

UPDATE: We are on the scene of an officer involved shooting in the 6300 block of Josephine Road in Waldorf in which two officers were injured. Situation is ongoing and we will provide updates as we can.
— Charles Co Sheriff (@CCSOMD) May 17, 2021

“We are on the scene of an officer involved shooting in the 6300 block of Josephine Road in Waldorf in which two officers were injured. Situation is ongoing and we will provide updates as we can," the Charles County Sheriff’s Office said in a tweet on Monday.

US gun violence ‘major public health problem’: Report

Eight US medical groups have warned that gun-related casualties have turned into a “major public health problem.”

In another incident reported in a suburban neighborhood of Los Angeles over the weekend, three people were wounded in gunfire.

The shooting happened on Sunday when a man was seen in an argument with someone at the business before taking a handgun from his vehicle and opening fire, Los Angeles Police Department officials said in a statement.

The victims were taken to a nearby hospital. One continues to be in critical condition, LAPD officials said.

It comes amid a spate of public shootings across US. With the Covid-19 virus numbers fading, gun violence has returned with the same force and ferocity as before, pushing the demand for protection from such events through insurance cover.

As Covid-19 numbers fade, Americans brace up for old normal – mass shootings

The insurance policies have become increasingly popular, and absolutely necessary, in the wake of alarming increase in mass shootings in different US cities in recent years.

According to a report by the Gun Violence Archive, a non-profit research group, almost 200 mass shootings were witnessed in the US in the first 132 days of this year.

This year, the US has averaged more than one mass shooting a day, marking an upward trend since the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut, when a 20-year-old man shot and killed 26 people, including 20 children.

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