By Calvin Palmer
Two shooting incidents at an Army base today claimed the lives of 12 people and 31 others were wounded.
The shootings occurred at Fort Hood, Texas, and the Army says one shooter has been killed and two others apprehended. All three are U.S. soldiers.
The shooter killed has been identified as as Army Maj Malik Nadal Hasan. He is believed to be in his late 30s, according to a law enforcement official.
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.
The identities of the victims have not yet been released.
The second incident took place at the Howze Theater on the base, where a graduation had been scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
Sgt Rebekah Lampam, a spokeswoman at Fort Hood, said a graduation ceremony for soldiers who finished college courses while deployed was going on in the auditorium at the time of the shooting.
The FBI was sending agents to the scene. Texas Rangers and state troopers were en route to Fort Hood to help seal the perimeter of the 108,000 acre base.
Homeland Security spokeswoman Sara Kuban said: “DoD, DHS, FBI and other members of the intelligence community are assessing and gathering facts about the shooting.
“Because this is early in this event, we cannot at this time confirm motives behind these shootings.”
[Based on a report by the Associated Press.]
